Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé has expressed his desire to see the Ballon d’Or return to the Santiago Bernabéu, saying the prestigious individual award would give the club’s supporters another reason to celebrate.
Mbappé made the comments during an interview with Spanish newspaper AS on Thursday as he discussed his ambitions for the individual honour. The France captain said he wanted the award to return to Real Madrid and be celebrated by the club’s supporters.
The French forward is among the 30 nominees for the 2026 Ballon d’Or after producing a prolific 2025/26 campaign. He finished as La Liga’s leading scorer with 25 goals and was also the Champions League’s top scorer with 15 goals.
Mbappé then continued his impressive scoring record at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where he scored 10 goals for France and claimed the tournament’s Golden Boot. His World Cup tally also moved to 22 goals across his career, making him the competition’s all-time leading scorer.
Despite those individual achievements, Mbappé did not win a major team trophy with Real Madrid during the 2025/26 season, while France finished fourth at the World Cup after losing their semi-final against eventual champions Spain.
Earlier this month, Mbappé said he believed his performances gave him a strong case for the Ballon d’Or. He pointed to his goalscoring record and his achievements at the World Cup while acknowledging that the final decision would be made by the award’s voting panel.
His latest comments place the focus not only on his personal ambition but also on his desire to see the award associated with Real Madrid again. The club has four players among the 30 nominees for this year’s prize, with Vinícius Júnior, Jude Bellingham and Marc Cucurella joining Mbappé on the shortlist.
The last Real Madrid player to win the men’s Ballon d’Or was Karim Benzema in 2022. Since then, the award has gone to players representing Manchester City, Inter Milan and Paris Saint-Germain.
Mbappé has yet to win the Ballon d’Or since beginning his professional career, despite previously finishing among the leading candidates. His current nomination comes after one of the most productive individual seasons of his career.
The 2026 Ballon d’Or winner will be announced at a ceremony in London on October 26. The award will be decided by an international jury of journalists representing the top 100 countries in the FIFA rankings.
For Mbappé, the wait for the individual prize continues, with his latest comments making clear that he would like the next Ballon d’Or celebration to take place at the Santiago Bernabéu.
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