Ballon d'Or 2026: Samuel Umtiti criticises the race for the prize

Samuel Umtiti has criticised the growing debate around the Ballon d'Or 2026, arguing that the individual prize is taking too much attention away from football's collective nature. The former France, Lyon and Barcelona defender spoke as the race intensified after the return of the Champions League.

The award ceremony is scheduled for 26 October in London. Kylian Mbappé is among the 30 nominees and publicly presented himself as a credible candidate on Monday. The France forward pointed to his statistics and records, despite not having won a major club or international title during the period being considered.

Mbappé's comments were followed by a series of claims from other leading contenders. Ousmane Dembélé, who won the 2025 Ballon d'Or, said the prize should go to one of his Paris Saint-Germain team-mates after the club's Champions League triumph. PSG have nine players on the 30-name shortlist.

Lamine Yamal has also entered the discussion. The Barcelona player highlighted his World Cup victory with Spain while making his case in a field that includes several of the season's most prominent attacking players. The succession of public claims has left Umtiti increasingly frustrated with the tone of the conversation.

Speaking on After Foot, Umtiti described Mbappé as a confident person but questioned whether a player should promote his own candidacy. He acknowledged that Mbappé had scored many goals and performed strongly at different points, yet said the forward should focus on what he does on the pitch rather than choosing himself when asked who deserves the award.

Umtiti's wider objection concerns the way attacking players view the prize. He said the Ballon d'Or had become exceptionally important to forwards and argued that players could win the Champions League with their teams while still thinking mainly about their personal recognition. In his view, statistics alone cannot provide a complete assessment of a football season.

The former France international also questioned the inclusion of Mexico forward Quiñones on the shortlist. He referred to Quiñones' four goals at the World Cup but noted that Mexico were eliminated in the round of 16. For Umtiti, that example raised doubts about the standards used to assemble the nominees and reinforced his belief that the ceremony no longer reflects the collective character of the sport.

Umtiti, a member of France's 2018 World Cup-winning squad, said he no longer watches the ceremony and has not followed the award closely since the era of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. He argued that their extraordinary statistics carried a different weight because their seasons were also judged against major titles. The 2026 contest, he said, lacks one clearly dominant player above the rest.

That uncertainty has left the field open to competing arguments based on goals, records, team success and international achievement. Mbappé's case rests heavily on his production, while PSG's nine nominees benefit from the club's Champions League victory. Dembélé's defence of his team-mates and Yamal's reference to Spain's World Cup success show how the debate is being framed around different measures of excellence.

The next formal stage will be the announcement of the winner in London on 26 October. Until then, the public discussion will continue to test the balance between individual performance and collective honours. Umtiti's intervention has added a direct challenge to a campaign increasingly driven by players explaining why they should receive football's most prominent individual award.