Ousmane Dembele has a firm view on where the Ballon d’Or is heading next, and it does not involve leaving Paris. Speaking to L’Equipe, the reigning holder made a Dembele Ballon d’Or prediction that will please the Parc des Princes: “I think that the Ballon d’Or will stay in the hands of a PSG player.”
Then, having said it, he pointedly left himself out of his own shortlist.
The Dembele Ballon d’Or prediction: his top three
Asked to name the three players he would back to win the 2026 award, Dembele went for Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe. Only one of those three plays at the Parc des Princes, which tells you exactly who the France international has in mind when he talks about the trophy staying in Paris.
He would not include himself. Asked whether that was simply humility, his answer was a one-word confirmation: “Yeah, that’s it.”
He was also asked directly whether Lionel Messi belonged in the conversation. He said no, sticking with his original three before widening the field to Michael Olise, Lamine Yamal, Fabian Ruiz and Willian Pacho. Two more Paris names, then, in an eight-man list — and both from the spine of the side rather than the front of it, which is a very Luis Enrique way of looking at a football team. The remarks were carried in English by Get French Football News.
Why Kvaratskhelia is the Paris candidate
Backing the Georgian is not a courtesy. Kvaratskhelia was ranked the third-best player in the world by ESPN at the end of August, in a list topped by Dembele himself, and L’Equipe have reported that PSG are working on improved terms for a winger whose current deal runs to 2029.
He has also been one of the very few Parisians to emerge from a scratchy start to the campaign with any credit. If you want the fuller picture, our profile of who Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is covers how he got here.
The award Dembele is defending
Dembele won the Ballon d’Or last September, after a season in which PSG took the Champions League, Ligue 1, the Coupe de France and the Trophee des Champions while also reaching the FIFA Club World Cup final. Les Parisiens then retained their European crown in 2025/26, making them back-to-back holders — the sort of run that tends to concentrate voters’ minds on one dressing room.
The 2026 ceremony takes place on 26 October.
Mbappe, meanwhile, likes his own chances
One of the three men on Dembele’s list has been making a similar noise from Madrid. Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Mbappe said that “lots of people on the street” raise the award with him, adding: “I have a feeling it’s a good year for that.”
His case is built on the summer rather than the club season. He finished the 2026 World Cup as the tournament’s all-time leading scorer on 22 goals, and became the first player to finish as its top scorer twice, in 2022 and 2026. He also scored 42 goals in 44 games for Real Madrid last term without winning a club trophy.
A prediction made in a difficult week
The timing is awkward, if nothing else. PSG’s season so far reads: the 2026 UEFA Super Cup won 2-1 against Aston Villa, a 1-0 Trophee des Champions defeat to Lens, and a Ligue 1 opening of 2-2 draws away at Rennes and at Lille. That was followed on Friday by a 2-1 defeat to Monaco, after which, as PSG Talk noted, L’Equipe handed out marks that spared almost nobody. Kvaratskhelia and Maghnes Akliouche were the only two players given a 6.
Which, in its own roundabout way, supports Dembele’s argument. Paris are not playing well. The Georgian is still the best thing about them. For more on the man making the prediction, read our profile of who Ousmane Dembele is.
