Ballon d’Or 2026: Criteria for Winner Selection Revealed

The organizers of the Ballon d’Or award have announced the criteria for selecting the winner of the 2026 edition, which is set to take place on October 26. This year marks the 70th edition of the prestigious award, and the competition is described as one of the most open in recent history.

An international jury composed of specialized journalists will cast their votes once the nominees are revealed. The jury includes one representative from each of the top 100 nations in the FIFA Men’s World Ranking and the top 50 in the Women’s World Ranking.

Voters will base their selections on three criteria: individual and decisive performance, collective achievements and trophies won, and class and fair play on and off the pitch. The points accumulated through these votes will determine the winners of the Men’s and Women’s Ballon d’Or trophies.

Last year, Ousmane Dembélé of France and Paris Saint-Germain won his first Men’s Ballon d’Or, while Aitana Bonmatí of Spain made history by winning her third consecutive Ballon d’Or Féminin.