Ballon d’Or 2026: how to watch the ceremony live and when it takes place

The 70th Ballon d’Or ceremony will be held in London on Monday, 26 October 2026, with coverage available on DAZN and a live stream provided by Kooora.

The ceremony will begin at 21:00 Saudi Arabia time and 22:00 UAE time. It will be staged in the British capital for the first time in the history of the award.

This year’s Ballon d’Or will use the full-season assessment system for the fifth time. Performances will be judged over the period from 3 August 2025 to 19 July 2026, rather than across the calendar year.

The event will reveal the winner of the men’s Ballon d’Or, succeeding 2025 holder Ousmane Dembele, as well as the recipients of several other awards. These include the Yashin Trophy for the world’s best goalkeeper, the Kopa Trophy for the best young player, and prizes for the best coach and best club.

The ceremony can be watched on DAZN, while online coverage will also be available through Kooora.

| Event | Date and time | Broadcasters | Venue |
|||||
| 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony | Monday, 26 October 2026, 21:00 Saudi Arabia; 22:00 UAE | DAZN and Kooora | London |

What is the Ballon d’Or?

The Ballon d’Or was introduced by France Football in 1956 after the idea was developed by sports journalists Gabriel Hanot and Jacques Ferran. It was initially known as the European Footballer of the Year award and was restricted to European players, meaning figures such as Pele and Diego Maradona were not eligible.

The rules changed in 1995 to allow players of any nationality who played for European clubs. George Weah became the first non-European winner that year.

In 2007, eligibility was extended to players in leagues across the world, while national-team coaches and captains joined journalists in the voting process. France Football and FIFA combined the award between 2010 and 2015 under the name FIFA Ballon d’Or, before separating in 2016. FIFA subsequently launched The Best.

The assessment criteria were changed again in 2022, with the award based on a full European football season rather than the calendar year. The voting panel was also adjusted to include one journalist from each of the top 100 nations in the FIFA rankings.

In 2024, France Football began a partnership with UEFA to support the ceremony, while retaining ownership of the Ballon d’Or brand and its voting system.

Lionel Messi remains the record winner with eight titles, ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo on five. Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten won three each.

Two-time winners include Franz Beckenbauer, Alfredo Di Stefano, Kevin Keegan, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Ronaldo. Other winners include Luis Suarez, Eusebio, Bobby Charlton, Raymond Kopa, Gerd Muller, Zinedine Zidane, Gianni Rivera, Ruud Gullit, Lothar Matthaus, Roberto Baggio, Hristo Stoichkov, Andriy Shevchenko, George Best, Allan Simonsen, Ronaldinho, Stanley Matthews, Omar Sivori, Josef Masopust, Lev Yashin, Denis Law, Florian Albert, Oleg Blokhin, Paolo Rossi, Igor Belanov, Jean-Pierre Papin, George Weah, Matthias Sammer, Rivaldo, Luis Figo, Michael Owen, Pavel Nedved, Fabio Cannavaro, Kaka, Luka Modric, Karim Benzema, Rodri and Ousmane Dembele.