Why is the Ballon d'Or in London? Who was the last British winner? What is the BOAT? Key questions answered

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          How Elena Sadiku reacted to being nominated for a Ballon d'Or (1:01)

          • Jamie Barton
          Oct 26, 2026, 02:57 AM ET

          Players are doing interviews everywhere, the internet is awash with debate and the world is once again remembering the time people were calling Jorginho the best player in the world.

          It can only mean one thing: it's Ballon d'Or season.

          But there are a few changes this time around. Why is the ceremony moving away from France? Who is on the two shortlists? And what on earth is a BOAT?

          Here's everything you need to know about the Ballon d'Or ceremony on Monday night.

          Why is the Ballon d'Or ceremony in London?

          Having been held at Paris' Théâtre du Châtelet for every edition since 2019, the Ballon d'Or ceremony is coming to London for the very first time and will be held at the London Palladium Theatre from 8 p.m. GMT.

          The organisers cite the fact that this year will mark 70 years since Stanley Matthews won the very first Ballon d'Or in 1956, calling the Blackpool and Stoke winger "a player who embodied the very best traits of Englishness in his every action."

          Who was the last British winner?

          Five British men -- Matthews, Denis Law, Bobby Charlton, Kevin Keegan and Michael Owen -- have claimed the coveted prize, with Keegan winning it twice.

          But it has been 25 years since Owen -- the most recent British winner -- got his hands on the trophy. He won the award after scoring 24 goals as Liverpool claimed a treble of the UEFA Cup, FA Cup and League Cup in the 2000-01 season.

          No British woman has won the Ballon d'Or since the addition of the women's category in 2018.

          What are the awards?

          The following awards will be presented at Monday's ceremony:

          • The Men's and Women's Ballon d'Or

          • The Men's and Women's Young Talent of the Year

          • The Men's and Women's Goalkeeper of the Year

          • The Men's and Women's Coach of the Year

          • The Men's and Women's Club of the Year

          • The Men's and Women's Striker of the Year

          • Sócrates Award (presented for solidarity initiatives and societal causes)

          - What it takes to win a Ballon d'Or: Trophies, goals and playing the PR game
          - Who will win the Ballon d'Or? Messi, Yamal, Kane -- or someone else?
          - From leg amputation fears to Ballon d'Or nominee: Elena Sadiku's trailblazing football journey

          Who is on the shortlist?

          The 30-man shortlist for the men's Ballon d'Or is as follows:

          The shortlist for the women's Ballon d'Or is:

          Who are the favourites for the men's and women's awards?

          Harry Kane is the strong favourite for the men's Ballon d'Or, having scored a remarkable 61 goals in 51 games in 2025-26, winning the Bundesliga and German Cup.

          Lamine Yamal is second favourite having won both the World Cup with Spain and LaLiga with Barcelona, while Kylian Mbappé and Lionel Messi are also in contention according to the bookies.

          Alexia Putellas looks nailed on to win the women's award after winning the quadruple with Barcelona. Doing so would see her match former teammate Aitana Bonmatí's record of three Ballon d'Or awards, having previously won the prize in 2021 and 2022.

          Bonmatí and Ewa Pajor are next on the list of favourites, but Putellas -- now with the London City Lionesses -- is very likely to win it.

          What is the BOAT?

          This year's ceremony will see the addition of a new prize: the BOAT (Ballon d'Or of All Time). The organisers have been keen to stress that it is not an official award like the ones listed above, but it has already caused plenty of debate online anyway.

          Instead of being voted on by the panel of journalists like the traditional awards (see below), the BOAT is decided by a public vote, in which fans around the world decide who -- out of the 10 men who have won it twice or more -- is the greatest Ballon d'Or winner in history.

          Those players are:

          • Lionel Messi

          • Cristiano Ronaldo

          • Johan Cruyff

          • Michel Platini

          • Marco van Basten

          • Alfredo di Stefano

          • Franz Beckenbauer

          • Kevin Keegan

          • Karl-Heinz Rummenigge

          • Ronaldo

          How does voting work?

          The winner of the Ballon d'Or is decided by a jury made up of 100 journalists for the men's award and 50 journalists for the women's.

          These journalists -- one for each of the top nations in the FIFA World Rankings -- pick their top 10 players from the 30-man shortlist in order. The player they pick as the best receives 15 points, the second-best gets 12 points, and the following 10, eight, seven, five, four, three, two and one point respectively.

          These points are counted up and the player with the most wins the coveted prize. If two players are tied for points, the one with the most first-place votes wins.

          Who will be in attendance?

          This year's ceremony will be hosted -- fittingly, given it is in London -- by Thierry Henry and his CBS Sports co-star Kate Scott.

          Harry Kane is very much expected to be in attendance having spoken of his nerves at waiting the whole night to find out whether he will get his hands on the award.

          Having boycotted the last two ceremonies over Rodri winning the 2024 prize instead of Vinícius Júnior, it has been reported that Real Madrid players may well be in attendance this year.

          Lamine Yamal is also likely to attend, although the majority of Paris Saint-Germain players -- 10 of whom are nominated for the men's award -- will likely not be in London, as their Ligue 1 game against Lyon was moved to Monday night due to the ongoing protests in Paris.

          Can I watch it live?

          Yes, you can. The ceremony will be available to stream on ballondor.com, and DAZN will also broadcast the event live.

          Who has won the most Ballons d'Or ever?

          Having lifted the award eight times, Lionel Messi has won the most Ballons d'Or in history. Next on the men's list is Cristiano Ronaldo, with five, while Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten have all won three.

          Aitana Bonmatí holds the record for the women's award, having won it in each of the last three years. Alexia Putellas would match her on three if she wins it this year.