2026 Ballon d'Or guide: schedule, where to watch and nominees

BarcelonaLondon will be dyed in blue and garnet again this Monday. The Ballon d'Or gala –which for the first time will be held in the capital of the United Kingdom and not in Paris, where it had normally been held– will once again bring together the best male and female footballers in a ceremony in which there will be a strong prominence for Barça.

Lamine Yamal and Alexia Putellas are the two main favorites to win the Ballon d'Or, but the Catalan entity will also receive awards in other categories, especially in the women's section, after winning the four titles it competed for last season. At the gala presented by former player Thierry Henry and journalist Kate Scott this Monday starting at 9:00 PM (Catalan time), all doubts will begin to be resolved.

The ceremony, which will last around two hours, will be preceded by the red carpet, where all the protagonists present at the London Palladium will parade (19:00 hours). After the gala, at 23:30 hours, there will be the first statements from the winners.

This year, the event, which celebrates its 70th edition, has moved to London to pay tribute to the first winner of the trophy, the Englishman Stanley Matthews, who was playing for Blackpool at the time. The award was created in 1956 by the French magazine France Football and, although the event usually takes place in Paris, between 2010 and 2015 the ceremony had already moved to Zurich (Switzerland).

The main nominees for the awards

Three blaugranes are the nominees for the men's Ballon d'Or: Lamine Yamal, Rodri Hernández —who won it in 2024— and Pau Cubarsí. All three will compete against players like Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappé or Ousmane Dembélé, the current holder of the trophy. Among the nominees is also the Catalan Marc Cucurella, currently a Chelsea footballer.

Regarding the women's category, six Barça footballers are candidates to win the award for best player: Esmee Brugts, Cata Coll, Caroline Graham Hansen, Patri Guijarro, Ewa Pajor, and Claudia Pina. Additionally, there are also Alexia Putellas and Mapi León, who although they currently play for London City Lionesses, are nominated for their season with the Catalan team.

In the case of the Kopa Trophy—which rewards the best player under 21 years old—Lamine Yamal is looking to retain the award for the third consecutive year, while Pau Cubarsí will seek his first major individual trophy. In the women's category, Vicky López wants her second Kopa, while Clara Serrajordi will try to win her first major individual award.

Finally, Joan Garcia (best goalkeeper), Cata Coll (best goalkeeper), Pere Romeu (best coach) and Barça (best women's club) are the other nominees from the blue and garnet team. The Gerd Müller trophy (best striker, male and female), which could be won by Ewa Pajor, and the Socrates award, which recognizes a humanitarian aspect by a footballer, will also be announced. Last year, this last award went to Luis Enrique's Xana Foundation.

Time and location of the Ballon d'Or gala

The Ballon d'Or gala will take place at the London Palladium (London) this Monday starting at 9:00 PM.

Where to watch the ceremony (television)

The Ballon d'Or gala can be followed on television through the Movistar platform on the Movistar Plus channel (dial 7).