Real Madrid’s head coach Jose Mourinho sits on the bench before the La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Real Sociedad in Madrid, Spain, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

With the 2026 Ballon d’Or drawing closer, Jose Mourinho has offered a rather different way of looking at football’s biggest individual prize, arguing that winning the Champions League or World Cup should not automatically put a player at the front of the queue. The Real Madrid manager believes the award should recognise the players who stand out at the very highest level and leave a lasting mark on the sport, rather than simply rewarding whoever happened to collect the biggest trophies.Mourinho made the comments during his press conference ahead of Real Madrid’s LaLiga meeting with newly promoted Malaga, where he also suggested that some of the strongest Ballon d’Or candidates are already playing under him at the Santiago Bernabéu.

Mourinho wants the award to recognise greatness, not just trophies

Mourinho’s argument is rooted in the idea that the Ballon d’Or should belong to players whose careers and performances make them impossible to forget, rather than someone whose main case rests on winning a major competition.“The Ballon d’Or should go to one of those players who, when they retire, we miss them for eternity. Maradona, Cristiano, Messi, R9, Zidane… You can’t give the Ballon d’Or to a guy just for winning the UCL or the World Cup. If you should give it to someone just for winning the UCL, then give it to Luis Enrique.”He then made it clear that, in his view, the award should not become a contest based on nationality, club or the biggest trophy won during the season.“No, it needs to go to the best player in the world, not necessarily a Spanish guy, or a PSG player. It needs to go to one of the 3-4 best players in the world, and those guys are here. But politics come into the Ballon d’Or, so I don’t like getting into politics.”Mourinho’s comments touch on a long-running debate surrounding the award, where players whose teams win the Champions League, World Cup or other major honours can often gain a significant advantage in the voting, even when another player may have produced a stronger individual season.

Who does Mourinho believe can win it?

Although Mourinho did not name a single player as the only deserving candidate in his broader comments, his reference to the “3-4 best players in the world” being at Real Madrid points towards a number of his own stars, including Kylian Mbappé, Vinícius Júnior and Jude Bellingham.Mbappé, in particular, has a compelling case after a remarkable 2025-26 campaign. The French forward scored 43 goals in 47 appearances for Real Madrid across all competitions, while also winning both the LaLiga Golden Boot and the Champions League Golden Boot.His year became even more extraordinary at international level during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Mbappé scored 10 goals in eight appearances, becoming the first player to reach double figures at a World Cup tournament in the 21st century and moving to the top of the competition’s all-time scoring charts.That form has continued into the new campaign, with Mbappé recently scoring a hat-trick against Real Sociedad.For a player who has spent much of the past decade being discussed among the world’s elite but has never won the Ballon d’Or, the timing could hardly be more interesting.Real Madrid will return to LaLiga action on Sunday, August 30, when they host Málaga CF at the Santiago Bernabéu. Kick-off is scheduled for 8:30 PM IST (5:00 PM local time), with Mourinho and his squad looking to continue their campaign in Spain’s top flight.