Never before has a single club had so many names among the 30 players shortlisted for the Ballon d'Or with Paris Saint-Germain breaking the record it set last year with nine nominees.
The 2026 names are Ousmane Dembélé, Achraf Hakimi, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Marquinhos, Nuno Mendes, João Neves, Willian Pacho, Fabián Ruiz, Ferran Torres and Vitinha.
This is in recognition of an exceptional season in which the team won a second successive UEFA Champions League.
Ousmane Dembélé
Already the winner of the 2025 Ballon d’Or, Ousmane Dembélé has been included among the 30 nominees for the second consecutive year. The Parisian forward once again left his mark on Paris Saint-Germain’s European campaign, scoring eight goals and providing two assists in 13 Champions League appearances. Among his highlights, he scored twice in the first leg of the semi-final against Bayern Munich and was PSG’s only goalscorer in the second leg, before finding the net again in the final against Arsenal, directly contributing to PSG’s triumph. Overall, Dembélé now has 18 Champions League goals for Paris Saint-Germain.
Achraf Hakimi
Achraf Hakimi has been included among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees for the second consecutive year. The Moroccan full-back once again played a major role in Paris Saint-Germain’s European run, making 13 appearances and playing 1,154 minutes in the Champions League. He scored one goal, and was particularly decisive in the final third, providing 6 assists—the third-highest total in the competition, level with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has been included among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees for the third time, and for the second time as a Paris Saint-Germain player. The Georgia international winger was one of the key contributors to PSG’s European campaign, scoring 10 goals and providing six assists in 16 Champions League appearances. Named UEFA’s Player of the Season in the competition, he scored twice in the first leg of the semi-final against Bayern Munich and made a decisive contribution in every round of the knockout stage. With 16 goal contributions, he also set the record for the most goals and goal contributions by a Georgian player in a single Champions League campaign.
Marquinhos
Paris Saint-Germain captain Marquinhos has been included among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees for the second time in his career. The Brazilian defender played 15 Champions League matches this season, starting every one of them, for a total of 1,319 minutes. He also scored two goals in the competition, taking his total to 11 Champions League goals for Paris Saint-Germain. With 122 European appearances in a PSG shirt, Marquinhos is now the Club’s all-time leading appearance maker in the competition.
Nuno Mendes
Nuno Mendes has been included among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees for the second time. The Portuguese full-back was one of Paris Saint-Germain’s most consistent players in the Champions League as an ever-president across all 17 of the Club’s matches in the competition. He scored two goals and provided two assists, while also making 87 ball recoveries, the second-highest total for PSG behind Willian Pacho and the second-highest total in the competition. Nuno Mendes was involved throughout PSG’s entire European campaign, all the way through to their triumph over Arsenal in the final.
João Neves
João Neves has been included among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees for the second consecutive year. The Portuguese midfielder had already been nominated for the 2025 edition after an impressive first season in Paris, finishing third in last year’s Kopa Trophy. In the 2025–26 Champions League, he played in 14 matches, starting 13 of them, for a total of 1,143 minutes. He scored 2 goals and provided 3 assists in the competition, giving him five goal contributions during the European campaign. At 21, João Neves continues to develop at the highest level and once again played a key role in Paris Saint-Germain’s run to European glory.
Willian Pacho
Willian Pacho has been included among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees for the first time. The Ecuadorian defender was one of the key figures in Paris Saint-Germain’s European campaign, making 17 Champions League appearances - the full number of matches played by the Club - and scoring two goals. With 1,560 minutes played, he also recorded the most playing time of any PSG player in the competition. His consistency was accompanied by outstanding defensive work: Pacho made 105 ball recoveries, the highest total in the 2025–26 Champions League.
Fabián Ruiz
Fabián Ruiz has been included among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees for the second consecutive year. The Spanish midfielder played nine Champions League matches last season, scoring one goal and providing one assist, as he helped Paris Saint-Germain secure their second consecutive European title. A few weeks later, he was also crowned world champion with Spain, starting the final against Argentina to achieve an exceptional double in 2026. Fabián Ruiz is the only player to have won both the Champions League and the World Cup during this year.
Ferran Torres
Ferran Torres makes his first appearance among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees following a 2026 highlighted by a major achievement with the Spanish national team. A world champion with La Roja, the forward scored the only goal of the final against Argentina, finding the net in the 106th minute after coming on in the 62nd minute. Named Player of the Match, he secured Spain’s second World Cup title. A few weeks later, he joined Paris Saint-Germain, beginning a new chapter in his career.
Vitinha
Vitinha has been included among the 30 Ballon d’Or nominees for the third consecutive year, after finishing 27th in 2024 and third in 2025. The Portuguese midfielder was once again one of Paris Saint-Germain’s driving forces in the Champions League, making 17 appearances and playing 1,543 minutes. He scored six goals and provided one assist in the competition, including a goal in the group stage against Tottenham Hotspur. In the final against Arsenal, Vitinha was also named UEFA’s Player of the Match, capping a campaign in which he covered 190.8 kilometres—the highest total among PSG players.
Matvey Safonov nominated for the Yashin Trophy
Matvey Safonov has been nominated for the Yashin Trophy for the first time, an award presented to the best goalkeeper of the year. The Russian goalkeeper made his mark at the end of 2025 during the Intercontinental Cup. In the final against Flamengo, he made four saves during the penalty shootout, helping Paris Saint-Germain win the first title in the Club’s history in the competition. A few months later, Safonov also started during the knockout stage of the 2025–26 Champions League, before starting the final against Arsenal, which PSG won, making it a season in which he played a part in two more international titles for Paris Saint-Germain.
Warren Zaïre-Emery nominated for Young Player of the Year Award
Warren Zaïre-Emery has been nominated for the Young Player of the Year Award. At just 20 years old, the French midfielder once again played an important role in the Parisian squad, taking part in Paris Saint-Germain’s entire Champions League campaign. He made 17 appearances in the competition, including 15 starts, for a total of 1,339 minutes. Providing one assist, he featured in the final against Arsenal, coming on in the second half and helping the Club secure its second consecutive European title.
Luis Enrique nominated for Best Coach
Luis Enrique has been nominated for the Best Coach award for the second consecutive year. Already recognised in 2025 after leading Paris Saint-Germain to the first Champions League in the Club’s history, the Spanish coach once again made history by achieving the remarkable feat of retaining the European crown. After defeating Arsenal in the final in Budapest, Paris Saint-Germain became only the second club of the modern Champions League era to win the competition in two consecutive years.
With this latest triumph, Luis Enrique now has three Champions League titles as a coach, following his success with FC Barcelona in 2015 and his two consecutive victories with Paris Saint-Germain in 2025 and 2026. Since arriving in Paris in 2023, he has now won 13 trophies with the Club, including two Champions League titles, two UEFA Super Cups, three French league titles, and one Intercontinental Cup.
Paris Saint-Germain nominated for Club of the Year
Already crowned Club of the Year in 2025, Paris Saint-Germain have once again been nominated in this category following another historic period. Over the course of twelve months, Les Rouge et Bleu won five trophies: the 2025 UEFA Super Cup, the 2025 FIFA Intercontinental Cup, the 2025 Trophée des Champions, the 2025-2026 French league title and, for the second successive year, the Champions League. A few weeks later, the Club also won the 2026 UEFA Super Cup against Aston Villa, bringing the total number of trophies won during this period to six.
With this second consecutive European triumph and another UEFA Super Cup, Paris Saint-Germain continued their historic run, arriving at a total of 61 trophies in the Club’s history.
With 10 players shortlisted for the Ballon d'Or, the club has made history: no club has ever had as many nominees in a single year. Added to this is a nomination for the Yashin Trophy, Young Player of the Year, Coach of the Year and Club of the Year.
The Ballon d’Or 2026 ceremony will take place on 26 October in London.
