Harry Kane was the famous winner of the 70th Ballon d’Or and Jamie Carragher delivered his verdict with a sly dig at Tottenham Hotspur.
Jamie Carragher aimed a sly probe at Tottenham Hotspur after Harry Kane won the Ballon d’Or on Monday night.
The forward became the first Englishman to win the prestigious award in 25 years, competing with Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe and Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal. The 33-year-old Brazilian, who scored 73 goals for club and county in the 2025-26 season, was emotional on stage at the London Palladium after Brazilian legend Ronaldo presented him with the award.
Kane thanked Tottenham, Bayern Munich, England and friends and family in an emotional speech in front of an energetic crowd. The former Spurs star insisted he “wouldn’t be where I am today” without the Lilywhites, where he scored 280 goals in 435 appearances before leaving three years ago for a £100m fee.
Since Kane’s departure, he has scored 156 goals in 159 appearances for Bayern and established himself as one of the best strikers in the world. During his time in Germany, he won the Bundesliga twice, the DFB Cup once and the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup twice. Along with the main Ballon d’Or award, Kane also won the Gerd Müller Trophy as the top scorer of the 2025/26 season on Monday night.
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Speaking after the ceremony, Carragher insisted Kane would not have won the Ballon d’Or if he was still at Tottenham. “It’s a move he has to make,” the former Liverpool defender told Sky Sports.
“I thought he could do the Premier League goalscoring record, but not only that, he does the goalscoring records. But it also gives him a great chance to win the Champions League and be involved in the Ballon d’Or. There’s no way Harry Kane could win the Ballon d’Or if he played for Tottenham.”
Carragher later praised Kane for his success. “I’m absolutely delighted. What a career he’s had, what a player he is and as a country we don’t have enough Ballon d’Or winners,” he said.
“My former team-mate Michael Owen was the last to win in 2001, so it’s been a long wait. But we have two of the best players of their era in Harry Kane and, I think, future Ballon d’Or winner Jude Bellingham. I’m delighted for Kane and for the country.”
Kane had planned to enjoy his Ballon d’Or win with family and friends on a flight back to Munich on Tuesday morning ahead of Bayern’s afternoon training session ahead of Wednesday’s DFB-Pokal clash with Magdeburg.
“It was a good sign for me to be here in London and it has been for a long time,” Kane said. “We’ve got so many incredible English players. I’ve grown up watching the greats because it’s an obvious shame that none of those lads won this award.
“So I’m very proud to put us back on the map and to be here with this trophy. I still have a lot to achieve in the game, from the Champions League at club level to winning the big trophy with England. That’s definitely the number one priority, so there’s a lot of great things I want to achieve.”