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Harry Kane became the first Ballon d’Or winner to miss out on the FIFPRO World XI in the same year since the players’ award was introduced in 2005, despite winning football’s most prestigious individual honour last month.
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The Bayern Munich striker scored an impressive 73 goals for club and country last season, helped the German giants secure the Bundesliga title and finished as the league’s top scorer for the third consecutive campaign.
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Kane narrowly missed out on the forward positions after receiving 27.6 per cent of the votes, finishing behind Erling Haaland (28.4%), Lionel Messi (29.5%), Lamine Yamal (37.4%) and Kylian Mbappe (46%).
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Lionel Messi extended his record as the most selected player in FIFPRO World XI history with an 18th appearance, while more than 26,000 professional footballers from 75 countries participated in the 2026 voting process.
November 9, (THEWILL) – Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane has become the first Ballon d’Or winner to miss out on the FIFPRO World 11 in the same year since the players’ award was introduced in 2005.
He was surprisingly excluded from the 2026 FIFPRO Men’s World XI announced on Monday, despite winning the prestigious Ballon d’Or award last month following an outstanding campaign for club and country.
The 33-year-old scored 73 goals for club and country last season, while leading Bayern Munich to the Bundesliga title and also finishing as the German top-flight’s leading scorer for the third consecutive season.
He scored 14 goals in the UEFA Champions League as the German champions reached the semi-finals.
Kane ranked 5th among the attackers, with 27.6% of the votes.
Despite his remarkable numbers, he missed out on a place in the team selected exclusively by professional footballers from around the world.
According to FIFPRO, more than 26,000 professional footballers from 75 countries participated in the voting process for this year’s men’s and women’s teams.
Kane narrowly missed out on the forward positions after securing 27.6 percent of the votes, finishing behind Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, who received 28.4 percent.
Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe received 46 percent, while Barcelona youngster, Lamine Yamal, secured 37.4 percent. Inter Miami captain Lionel Messi also made the final selection with 29.5 percent.
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Cristiano Ronaldo missed out on the XI too, but Lionel Messi extended his record as the most selected player in FIFPRO World XI history with an 18th appearance after returning to the team for the first time since 2023.
Arsenal goalkeeper, David Raya, was selected between the posts, while Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi, Paris Saint-Germain duo Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes completed the defensive positions.
Manchester City’s Rodri, Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham and PSG midfielder Vitinha occupied the three midfield positions.
Kylian Mbappe, Lamine Yamal and Lionel Messi completed the forward positions.
FIFPRO is the worldwide representative organisation for 70,000 professional footballers. FIFPRO.
It is made up of 70 national players’ associations.
