A media push that has gone down badly
Kylian Mbappe has been making the rounds to talk up his chances of winning the 2026 Ballon d’Or. In recent days, he has appeared on L’Equipe, AS, RFI and CNN. According to Spanish newspaper Sport, that constant self-promotion is rubbing people at Real Madrid the wrong way.
The France captain can point to a strong individual record: top scorer in La Liga, top scorer in the Champions League, top scorer at the 2026 World Cup. The numbers are hard to argue with, even if some observers feel he has gone missing on the biggest nights, the kind of matches that really matter.
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Madrid stays quiet by design
Unlike Bayern Munich, Barcelona or PSG, who have backed their candidates publicly, Real Madrid has made no official statement about Mbappe’s bid. The club has boycotted the ceremony since 2024, after Vinicius Jr was beaten by Rodri for the award. Talks with France Football about repairing relations have, though, raised the possibility of the club returning for the London ceremony.
Sport also reports that the Madrid hierarchy is watching the Frenchman’s campaign from a distance, with a degree of scepticism, and had already dropped the idea of sending a delegation. One club executive was even quoted in the paper with a barb: “He’s practically begging for Ballon d’Or votes.”
Another flashpoint on top of the others
Madrid are also said not to have liked the player’s involvement in a row over a T-shirt in support of Ceuta. None of it threatens his status as an automatic starter, but it has helped build a more uneasy mood than anyone expected with the trophy presentation just weeks away.
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