Nigerians missing as 2026 Ballon d’Or winner emerges today

Nigeria will miss out on the 70th edition of the prestigious Ballon d’Or awards ceremony, as the winners for both men’s and women’s categories and various other trophy categories are set to be announced today. Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal, and Kylian Mbappe lead the race for the men’s category, while no Nigerian player appears on any of the shortlists.

The award show, hosted by Kate Scott and Thierry Henry, will take place at the London Palladium, marking the first time it has been held outside Paris. Presenters will be broadcasting from London at 8 pm, which is 9 pm in Nigeria.

The shortlists are dominated by players from Paris Saint-Germain, with 10 nominees, including Ousmane Dembele, Achraf Hakimi, and Vitinha. The 30-man list also includes Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Barcelona, and Arsenal representatives, such as Gabriel, Declan Rice, and William Saliba. Erling Haaland and Bruno Fernandes from England’s Premier League are among the other notable players on the list.

The absence of Nigerian players, including Victor Osimhen and Ademola Lookman, who scored a combined 42 goals in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, is attributed to the time frame of the assessment window, which ran from August 3, 2025, to July 19, 2026. Osimhen finished eighth in 2023, while Lookman placed 14th in 2024. Unfortunately, Nigeria did not qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, making their performances on the international stage less impactful in the eyes of the judges.

Among the women’s nominees are Nigeria’s Justine Madugu and Chiamaka Nnadozie, who were shortlisted for the Women’s Team Coach of The Year and Yashin Trophy awards, respectively. Both women finished fourth in their categories in Paris. Africa is represented on the men’s list only by Sadio Mané from Al Nassr. The winner of the Ballon d’Or is decided by journalists from the top 100 countries in the FIFA men’s rankings, who rank players based on individual performance, team achievements, and class and fair play.