The Ballon d’Or award will be held in London for the first time later this year to mark its 70th anniversary.
The prize to crown the world’s best player is the most coveted individual award in the game and is usually held in Paris.
But this year it will be staged in the English capital to pay tribute to Stanley Matthews, who was the first ever winner of the Ballon d’Or in 1956.
Organisers say London is a “symbolic” choice of venue and the ceremony will take place on October 26.
Matthews is seen as one of the greatest players of all time despite a low-key career with Stoke City and Blackpool.
‘The Magician’ played more than 800 career appearances, scoring 80 times, and he won the FA Cup with Blackpool in 1953.
Previously the awards have taken place in Zurich between 2010 and 2015 due to a Fifa merger.
But since then it has returned to Paris and on one occasion in 2017 it was even held at the Eiffel Tower.
Officials claimed the announcement meant there was scope for the ceremony to be held in other locations outside of France in the future.
They said in a statement: “This is a circumstantial and temporary choice, though the increasingly international stature of this prestigious award does leave room to imagine the experience could be repeated elsewhere outside France in the coming years.”
The current reigning men’s champion is PSG star Ousmane Dembele, who lifted the Champions League last year, while Aitana Bonmati lifted the women’s award.
England captain Harry Kane is among the favourites to win this year’s award after banging in a ridiculous 61 goals in 51 games.
He can further strengthen his bid to win the gong at this year’s World Cup with the Three Lions.
Other strong contenders for this year’s prize include Barcelona starlet Lamine Yamal, who came second in the 2025 honours.
The likes of Arsenal‘s Declan Rice and Bayern Munich forward Michael Olise should also be in contention.
However, it’s highly likely that the award could be influenced by players that win any of the Champions League or World Cup this summer.
PSG winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is also on the shortlist of names after another fantastic season saw him register double figures in goals and assists.
When asked about a potential nomination ahead of the Champions League final, he replied: ”I feel a little bit, but it’s not about me, I want to be simple, I just play because I love it.
”When I go to the pitch, I try to enjoy it with amazing team-mates, amazing club, amazing coach, with his staff, I just try to enjoy it every time I train, I try to play.
”Maybe life has changed a little bit in this time, but I want to stay the same, humble, and I’m just doing the job I love, I’m just trying to enjoy.”
