Barça leads Ballon d'Or night as Kane and Putellas compete
FC Barcelona will be one of the main protagonists of the Ballon d'Or gala tonight in London, with the broadcast scheduled for 21:00 h on Movistar. Among the favorites are Harry Kane, Lamine Yamal, Ewa Pajor and Alexia Putellas, who are contesting the major awards.
Nominations and categories
The blaugrana club accumulates seventeen nominations spread across ten categories and aims to win several awards. Moreover, the list includes players who wore the Barça shirt last season, such as Alexia Putellas and Mapi León, now at London City Lionesses, and Ferran Torres, who plays for PSG.
The most relevant unknowns revolve around the men's and women's Ballon d'Or. In the men's category, Lamine Yamal seeks to overcome Harry Kane, while the battle seems to be centered between the blaugrana and the English forward of Bayern Munich. In the women's category, Alexia Putellas starts with an advantage over the rest of the candidates, with her former teammate Ewa Pajor as the main alternative.
Individual and collective awards
The award for Best Talent of the Year, formerly called the Kopa Trophy, is set to go to the blaugrana: Lamine Yamal is the top contender for the third time, ahead of Pau Cubarsí. In the women's category, Vicky López is the favorite, surpassing Clara Serrajordi.
London hosts Barcelona's delegation at the Ballon d'Or gala
Cata Coll will be chosen Best Goalkeeper after a spectacular performance in the Oslo final against OL Lyonnes (4‑0). Barça's fourth Champions will allow Pere Romeu to attempt a historic recognition, becoming the first blaugrana coach to receive this award.
Barça's women's squad is the favorite to be named Best Women's Team after achieving a quartet of titles, while PSG is shaping up as Best Men's Team. Luis de la Fuente appears set to claim the Best Men's Coach award, surpassing Luis Enrique Martínez, who repeated the Champions and maintained PSG's dominance in France.
The Spanish national team will also be present at the gala after winning the World Cup last summer in the United States. In the Best Goalkeeper category, Unai Simón starts with an advantage over Joan García, David Raya and Thibaut Courtois.
The men's Ballon d'Or is chosen by one hundred specialized journalists and the women's by fifty, both representing the highest‑ranked countries in the FIFA ranking. The same jurors decide the awards for Best Goalkeeper, Best Coach and Team of the Year in both categories, while the Best Young Player is voted by former Ballon d'Or winners.