The Ballon d'Or: Hakimi the Only Arab Nominee, Bouaddi for Best Young Player
Moroccan defender Achraf Hakimi has been selected as one of the 30 nominees for the Ballon d'Or for Best Player in the World for 2026, while his compatriot Ayyoub Bouaddi and Algerian Ibrahim Maaza appear on the list for Best Young Player.
The Ballon d'Or shortlist includes six players from the Spanish national team, which won the 2026 World Cup: Lamine Yamal, Pau Cubarsi, Rodri, Fabian Ruiz, Marc Cucurella, and Ferran Torres.
The list also features a number of players from European champions Paris Saint-Germain, led by last year's winner Ousmane Dembélé.
Argentinian Lionel Messi, who has won the Ballon d'Or eight times in his career and was a World Cup runner-up with Argentina, is also a contender for the ninth time, despite announcing his international retirement less than ten days ago.
Among the nominees are two players from the Saudi league: Senegalese Sadio Mané (Al Nassr) and Mexican Julián Quiñones (Al Qadisiyah).
With a month and a half to go before the winner is announced, speculation is growing about who will take home the award in a season where it is difficult to pinpoint a clear frontrunner.
Spanish coach of PSG, Luis Enrique, stated at the beginning of September that, in his opinion, the award should go to one of the Parisian players, a sentiment echoed by Brazilian captain Marquinhos, who is also a nominee, during a press conference on Tuesday.
The Brazilian said, "I hope the award goes to one of the Paris Saint-Germain players. We have some truly amazing players. I can't name just one. Do you have the list? Am I on it? (laughs). It's an individual award. We've achieved significant titles."
Frenchman Kylian Mbappé, who did not win any titles with Real Madrid last season but became the all-time top scorer in World Cup history this summer, confirmed on Monday that he feels "this could be the year to win it."
In the Best Young Player category, Bouaddi (18 years old), who transferred to Manchester City, and Maaza (20 years old), a Bayer Leverkusen player, are nominated.
In the Best Goalkeeper category, Moroccan Yassine Bounou is competing alongside rivals such as Belgian Thibaut Courtois, Argentinian Emiliano Martínez, and Spaniards Unai Simon and David Raya.
Spanish Mikel Arteta (Arsenal) is competing against compatriots Enrique (PSG), Unai Emery (Aston Villa), Luis de la Fuente (Spain national team), and Belgian Vincent Kompany (Bayern Munich) for the Best Coach award.
In the Best Female Player category, the reigning champion for the past three years, Spanish Aitana Bonmatí, did not make the list, but her former Barcelona teammate Alexia Putellas, who won the award in 2021 and 2022 and joined London City Lionesses this summer, is among the nominees.
