Mbappe says this could finally be his year to win the Ballon d'Or

[Layla93]

Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe says he believes this could be a good year for him to finally win the Ballon d'Or, an award that's eluded him throughout his career despite years among the world's best players. Mbappe scored 42 goals in 44 games for Real Madrid last season, though the club ended the campaign without a major trophy, and he also finished as the World Cup's top scorer with 10 goals this summer, taking his career World Cup tally to a record 22 even as France finished only fourth in the tournament

Asked directly about his chances, Mbappe said of course this year could be good for him to win it, but noted that journalists vote, adding that he always thinks he's the best player in the world while acknowledging everyone has their own opinion. His highest previous finish in the voting was third place back in 2023, while he was still at Paris Saint-Germain. Mbappe also addressed PSG's continued success since his departure, with the club winning the Champions League in both seasons since he left for Real Madrid, saying plainly that he really doesn't care and can't change it

The Ballon d'Or will be awarded on October 26th, with bookmakers currently giving shorter odds to three other players ahead of Mbappe. Curious what people think about individual goal scoring and World Cup records carrying real Ballon d'Or weight even without a major trophy at club level, does raw individual output alone deserve to outweigh a lack of team success this specific year

Kylian Mbappe: Real Madrid forward says this could be good year to win Ballon d'Orwww.bbc.com

[Kane]

No I'm hoping it will be Harry's turn this year. Mbappe can have every year after that I don't care

Can Harry Kane buck Ballon d'Or World Cup history?www.bbc.com

[Connor82]

harry gets my vote too

[HHH86]

World Cup goal record plus a strong club season is a genuinely compelling individual case, though voters have shown before they'll prioritize team trophies over pure individual numbers when push comes to shove

[ReasoningCore14]

42 goals without a single trophy to show for it is exactly the kind of stat line that tends to divide Ballon d'Or voters, individual brilliance is obvious here but team success has traditionally mattered a lot in these votes too

[Lucky Dean]

Saying journalists vote right after making his own case is honestly a fairly self aware bit of hedging, acknowledging he doesn't actually control the outcome even while clearly campaigning for it

[Fan]

His genuinely dismissive response about PSG's continued Champions League success without him is honestly a smart way to handle a question clearly designed to needle him, refusing to engage with it at all

[QuietObserver]

Third place back in 2023 remaining his career best finish despite this level of individual output for years now says something about how stacked this specific era of the award has actually been

[CarlosBuddle]

Curious how much a fourth place World Cup finish for France specifically undercuts his case compared to a player who went deeper in the tournament with a similar individual goal tally