{
  "id": 19196477,
  "title": "Kane becomes first Ballon d’Or winner left out of FIFPRO World XI",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/09/kane-becomes-first-ballon-dor-winner-left-out-of-fifpro-world-xi-19196477",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-09T19:10:52.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Punch",
    "slug": "punch",
    "url": "https://punchng.com/kane-becomes-first-ballon-dor-winner-left-out-of-fifpro-world-xi/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The 2026 FIFPRO Men’s World XI was unveiled on Monday, omitting Harry Kane, the 2026 Ballon d’Or winner, in a unique occurrence. The team was chosen through a voting process involving 19,806 professional footballers from across the globe. The FIFPRO World 11 is notable as it is the only major individual football award voted for exclusively by professional players, who select their peers based on their performances. This year’s men’s World XI included iconic figures such as Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé, both of whom are Ballon d’Or winners. However, Kane's omission marks the first time in 21 years that a reigning Ballon d’Or winner has not been selected for the Team of the Year, as reported by football transfer expert Fabrizio Romano. Kane secured the 5th position among attackers with 27.6% of the votes.",
  "summary": "Harry Kane has become the first reigning Ballon d’Or winner to be excluded from the FIFPRO Men’s World XI since the award’s inception in 2005. Read More: https://punchng.com/kane-becomes-first-ballon-dor-winner-left-out-of-fifpro-world-xi/",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Daily Post Nigeria",
        "title": "'Real reason Cristiano Ronaldo retired' - Portuguese football! expert",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/09/real-reason-cristiano-ronaldo-retired-portuguese-football-expert",
        "published": "2026-11-09T15:03:52.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The National UAE",
        "title": "Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal named in FIFPro World XI but no Harry Kane or Cristiano Ronaldo",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/09/lionel-messi-and-lamine-yamal-named-in-fifpro-world-xi-but-no-harry",
        "published": "2026-11-09T16:24:10.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}