Thibaut Courtois joins the Ballon d'Or nominations after Kompany

Thibaut Courtois, the 34‑year‑old Real Madrid goalkeeper, is among the ten finalists for the Lev Yashin Trophy, which will be presented at the Ballon d’Or ceremony on October 26 in London, where the Belgian Vincent Kompany is also nominated for the best manager award.

Thibaut Courtois' nominations

He is regarded as one of the best players in the world in his position, despite Real Madrid's lack of trophies in 2026.

Courtois already won the Lev Yashin Trophy in 2022, which reinforces his legitimacy among the nominees.

Last year, he was also on the list but finished fourth behind the winner Gianluigi Donnarumma of PSG.

The other nine finalists include the Moroccan Yassine Bounou of Al‑Hilal, the Swiss Gregor Kobel of Borussia Dortmund and the Spanish Joan Garcia of FC Barcelona.

Also added are the Spanish Unai Simon of Athletic Bilbao, the Senegalese Edouard Mendy of Al‑Ahli, the Russian Matveï Safonov of Paris Saint‑Germain and the Argentine Emiliano Martinez of Aston Villa and Chelsea.

The Portuguese goalkeeper David Raya of Arsenal and the Cape Verdean Vozinha of GD Chaves and Colo‑Colo complete the group.

ALSO, the Moroccan Yassine Bounou represents Africa among the finalists.

Vincent Kompany, Belgian pioneer

Vincent Kompany, the Belgian coach, becomes the first manager to enter the Ballon d’Or roll of honour, being one of the five candidates for the manager of the year trophy.

It is the first time a Belgian manager has featured among the five Ballon d’Or finalists.

His nomination reflects a league‑cup double won with Bayern Munich, the German Super Cup victory and a place in the Champions League semi‑finals.

The jury, made up of one hundred international journalists, will assess performances covering the period from August 3, 2025 to July 19, 2026.

One of the other nominees is Mikel Arteta, England champion with Arsenal, followed by Unai Emery, Europa League winner with Aston Villa, Luis Enrique, France champion and Champions League winner with Paris Saint‑Germain, and Luis de la Fuente, world champion with Spain.

Luis de la Fuente was already a finalist in 2025 and is considered the top favourite for the Johan Cruyff trophy.

For Courtois, the nomination confirms his elite status despite a season without collective titles.

For Kompany, it symbolizes international recognition of the work done in Germany and paves the way for possible future successes.