Harry Kane has stood on plenty of big nights. None of them, he told Téléfoot, felt like 26 October.
“I was almost frozen when I heard my name. Everything around me just stopped, like in a movie,” the England captain said, adding that he had never experienced that kind of pressure before in his career.
Kane was announced as the 2026 Ballon d’Or winner at the London Palladium that night, edging Mbappé 1,055 points to 1,027. The 28-point gap was the fourth-tightest winning margin in the award’s history, with Kane collecting 40 first-place votes to Mbappé’s 23. Lamine Yamal finished third on 881 points.
At the podium itself Kane said he was “almost speechless” and called the London setting “extra special”, describing it as a good omen. The trophy was handed to him by Ronaldo, himself a two-time winner.
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The mantra, and the hidden hours
Asked what has driven him, Kane told Téléfoot he came across a line as a younger player that has stayed with him since.
“Work hard in silence. Let success be your noise.”
The 33-year-old described the parts of his routine spectators rarely see, specifically the extra treatment sessions, the ice baths and the finishing drills after training, as the core of what has fuelled the season. He told Téléfoot the hidden work is sometimes what he enjoys most, and said moving to Bayern Munich has carried him into the strongest form of his career.
Bayern’s first since Rummenigge
Kane is the first Englishman to take the men’s award in a quarter of a century, following Michael Owen in 2001, and Bayern Munich’s first recipient since Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in 1981.
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UEFA’s confirmation of the result records 73 goals for club and country across the 2025/26 campaign, a third straight Bundesliga top-scorer title, 14 Champions League goals, and a domestic treble with Bayern retaining their league crown.
At the same ceremony Kane also collected the Men’s Striker of the Year award.
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