Achraf Hakimi, Ayyoub Bouaddi, and Yassine Bounou will represent Morocco at the 2026 Ballon d’Or awards ceremony, set to take place in London on Monday evening.
Paris Saint-Germain defender Hakimi is among the 30 nominees for the men’s Ballon d’Or. Manchester City midfielder Bouaddi is in contention for the men’s best young player award, while Bounou, who plays for Al-Hilal and the Atlas Lions, is nominated for goalkeeper of the season.
The ceremony will be held at the London Palladium in the heart of the British capital. Co-organized by France Football magazine and UEFA, it will be hosted by former French international Thierry Henry and British journalist Kate Scott.
England’s Harry Kane, Spain’s Lamine Yamal, and France’s Kylian Mbappé are among the leading contenders to succeed Ousmane Dembélé, who won the award in 2025.
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London was chosen as the host city to pay tribute to English international Stanley Matthews, the first recipient of the award, which was created by France Football in 1956.
Kane, considered a favorite by the British press, hopes to become the first Englishman to win the award since Michael Owen in 2001. The Bayern Munich striker scored 73 goals for club and country over the past season, including 61 for the Bavarian side, with which he won the German league title and German Cup.
Yamal’s case rests on his contribution to Barcelona’s Spanish league title and Spain’s World Cup triumph.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid’s French striker Mbappé scored 25 goals in La Liga and 15 in the Champions League. He also won the Golden Boot at the 2026 World Cup with 10 goals.
According to France Football’s rules, individual performances and decisive contributions are the primary criteria in the voting, followed by team results and titles won, then class and fair play. The assessment period runs from August 3, 2025, to July 19, 2026, including the World Cup.
In the women’s category, Spain’s Alexia Putellas, who won the award in 2021 and 2022, is among the favorites.
The winners are chosen by a jury of specialist journalists. For the men’s award, one representative from each of the top 100 countries in the FIFA rankings votes, while for the women’s award, one representative from each of the top 50 countries votes. Each juror ranks 10 players from the 30 nominees.
The ceremony will also recognize the best young players, goalkeepers, coaches, clubs, and goalscorers in both the men’s and women’s categories. The Sócrates Award, named after the Brazilian football legend, honors solidarity initiatives and commitments to social causes.
