Lamine Yamal says he ‘deserves’ Ballon d’Or but Mbappe his main rival

Lamine Yamal says he ‘deserves’ Ballon d’Or but Mbappe his main rival‘Mbappe and I are the two best in the world,’ Yamal says before claiming he’d deserve to win the prestigious award.Lamine Yamal believes he would be a deserved winner of the Ballon d’Or this year, given his World Cup success with Spain and La Liga glory with Barcelona, but his closest competitor for the prestigious football award would be Real Madrid rival Kylian Mbappe.“I honestly believe there are two of us who are the best in the world, and this year I’d deserve it because of what I’ve won,” Lamine said in an interview clip shared by Spanish streaming platform Movistar on Sunday.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Ronaldo calls for life bans of Saudi Pro League fans after Jota chantslist 2 of 4Real Madrid’s Mbappe: AI dictator memes show lack of political awarenesslist 3 of 4Danish FA allege FIFA Legal Committee evaded questions on Infantino’s planlist 4 of 4Two men receive jail terms for violent burglary of Man City’s Donnarummaend of list“As far as I’m concerned, Mbappe and I are the two best in the world. It’s clear to me, and everyone who watches the matches knows it.”France striker Mbappe was the top scorer at the World Cup as well as in La Liga and the Champions League, and said last week no player was better than him last season, though he failed to win any silverware.Yamal was named La Liga’s best player in 2025-26 as Barcelona successfully defended the title, and later played a key role in Spain winning the World Cup in North America.Yamal’s Spain beat Mbappe’s France in the World Cup semifinal before going on to lift the trophy in North America [File: Annegret Hilse/Reuters]He had struck a more measured tone at a news conference last Tuesday, saying he believed he had a chance after an “incredible” season but would not beg for votes.Mbappe, meanwhile, has also made his case for the award in recent days.The Spanish teen was runner-up to Ousmane Dembele last year, while Mbappe was third in 2023, when Lionel Messi won the award for a record eighth time.