Toni Kroos does not vote for the prize, but he put his choice on record anyway, and it landed with a swipe at the players most others are backing.
The former Real Madrid and Germany midfielder replied to a post by German football commentator Florian Malburg on Instagram discussing the 2026 contenders.
“If you ask me, Kvara probably won’t win it, but for me he’s clearly number one,” Kroos wrote.
He then went after the names driving this year’s debate.
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“The four outstanding World Cup players (Rodri, Messi, Jude and Kylian) had a modest season or play in an insignificant league,” he added.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s case is built on his club season. The Georgian was central to PSG’s second straight Champions League triumph, scoring 10 goals and producing 16 direct goal involvements, the most in the competition. He also scored or assisted in seven consecutive knockout matches, a first in the modern format, before PSG saw off Arsenal on penalties in the Budapest final. He finished 12th in the 2025 Ballon d’Or.
The World Cup he could not reach
Georgia failed to qualify for this summer’s tournament, keeping Kvaratskhelia off the Ballon d’Or’s biggest stage.
Spain won the trophy, beating Argentina 1-0 in extra time at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, Ferran Torres finishing in the 106th minute. Rodri took the Golden Ball as best player of the tournament. Mbappé collected the Golden Boot with 10 goals, his second at a World Cup.
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Kroos had made the World Cup argument himself earlier in the year. On his podcast with brother Felix in May, he said of Kvaratskhelia: “The problem is: he won’t be a world champion.”
His personal verdict has shifted since. The obstacle has not.
London hosts the vote on 26 October
The award is decided by 100 journalists from the countries at the top of the FIFA rankings, and Kroos is not among them. The gala has moved out of Paris for the first time, with the ceremony set for the British capital on Monday, 26 October.
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