The 30 nominees for the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or are now confirmed, and the announcement has sharpened what was already one of the most intriguing individual award races of the year.
Alexia Putellas remains No. 1 in our Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 rankings, but this is far from a one-player contest. Ewa Pajor has the strongest scoring case, Melchie Dumornay has delivered repeatedly on the European stage, and Pernille Harder is firmly in the conversation after another prolific campaign.
The award will be presented on 26 October 2026 at the London Palladium Theatre. For the first time, the Ballon d’Or ceremony will take place in London.
Ranking note: The official 30-player nominee list was announced on 8 September 2026. The Top 10 below is the PlayersRanked editorial power ranking, not the final Ballon d’Or Féminin result.
Looking for the men’s award? See our 2026 Ballon d’Or rankings, favourites and predictions.
Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 Rankings: Current Top 10
With the nominees confirmed, our ranking now compares only players who are officially in contention.
Putellas stays on top, but Pajor is close enough to make this a genuine race. Dumornay and Harder occupy the next tier, while Khadija Shaw rounds out our current Top Five.
| Rank | Player | 2025/26 Club | Why she is in contention |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alexia Putellas | Barcelona | Champions League Player of the Season |
| 2 | Ewa Pajor | Barcelona | Champions League top scorer with 11 goals |
| 3 | Melchie Dumornay | OL Lyonnes | Outstanding individual season and European finalist |
| 4 | Pernille Harder | Bayern Munich | Eight Champions League goals |
| 5 | Khadija Shaw | Manchester City | Elite goalscoring output |
| 6 | Caroline Graham Hansen | Barcelona | Creativity and European success |
| 7 | Alessia Russo | Arsenal | Nine Champions League goals |
| 8 | Klara Bühl | Bayern Munich | Competition-leading eight assists |
| 9 | Clàudia Pina | Barcelona | Consistent attacking threat |
| 10 | Yui Hasegawa | Manchester City | Elite midfield control and influence |
Last updated: 9 September 2026
Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 Top Five Favourites
Our leading five contenders are:
- Alexia Putellas
- Ewa Pajor
- Melchie Dumornay
- Pernille Harder
- Khadija Shaw
Putellas has the most complete résumé, while Pajor arguably owns the clearest headline statistic: 11 Champions League goals, including two in the final.
The gap between the two is smaller than the ranking alone might suggest.
1. Alexia Putellas – Barcelona
PlayersRanked position: No. 1
Alexia Putellas sits at the top of our 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or ranking because her season combined almost everything voters tend to reward.
She scored seven goals and supplied seven assists during Barcelona’s Champions League campaign. That gave her 14 direct goal contributions, the highest total in the competition.
There was also a major individual honour to go with the numbers: UEFA named Putellas the 2025/26 Women’s Champions League Player of the Season after Barcelona won the competition.
That mix of goals, creativity, silverware and influence is difficult to beat.
She has already won the Ballon d’Or Féminin twice, in 2021 and 2022. A third victory would move her level with Aitana Bonmatí at the top of the all-time women’s list.
2. Ewa Pajor – Barcelona
PlayersRanked position: No. 2
Pajor does not need a complicated argument.
She scored 11 goals in the Women’s Champions League, more than any other player, and produced when the pressure was highest.
The Poland international scored twice in Barcelona’s 4–0 final victory over OL Lyonnes and was named Player of the Match.
Her overall Champions League total reached 13 direct goal contributions, just one fewer than Putellas.
If voters lean towards decisive goals and big-match impact, Pajor could easily finish first rather than second.
3. Melchie Dumornay – OL Lyonnes
PlayersRanked position: No. 3
Melchie Dumornay gives this race a different dimension.
The Haiti international was central to OL Lyonnes’ run to the Champions League final and earned a place in UEFA’s Team of the Season.
What makes her case especially interesting is not only the final destination but the road there. Dumornay repeatedly stood out in major European matches and collected Player of the Match recognition along the way.
Lyon’s heavy defeat against Barcelona in the final naturally strengthens Putellas and Pajor in a direct comparison, but it should not erase the quality of Dumornay’s season.
She remains one of the strongest individual performers among the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or nominees.
4. Pernille Harder – Bayern Munich
PlayersRanked position: No. 4
Pernille Harder has been at the top of women’s football for years, and 2025/26 added another convincing campaign to her résumé.
The Bayern Munich attacker scored eight times in the Champions League, behind only Pajor and Russo.
Bayern reached the semi-finals before losing to eventual champions Barcelona, while Harder was selected in UEFA’s Team of the Season.
She may not have the defining final performance of Pajor or the individual UEFA award won by Putellas, but consistency across the season keeps her comfortably inside our leading group.
5. Khadija Shaw – Manchester City
PlayersRanked position: No. 5
Khadija Shaw’s case is built much more around sustained attacking excellence.
Few forwards in the women’s game are as difficult to contain when Shaw is at her best. Her movement, strength and finishing make her one of the most productive strikers in world football.
What holds her slightly behind our top four is the lack of the same deep Champions League narrative.
Awards of this kind are often shaped by performances in the biggest knockout matches. Putellas, Pajor, Dumornay and Harder all had more opportunities to build that type of case.
Still, Shaw is officially nominated and belongs in the wider conversation over who could finish near the top.
6. Caroline Graham Hansen – Barcelona
Caroline Graham Hansen remains one of the most creative attacking players in the sport.
Her value cannot be reduced to goals alone. She stretches defences, creates space, progresses the ball and regularly produces the final pass.
The Norwegian contributed four assists during Barcelona’s Champions League campaign and was named Player of the Match in the 6–0 quarter-final win over Real Madrid.
Her biggest obstacle may simply be Barcelona’s depth.
When Putellas, Pajor, Pina and other teammates are all competing for individual recognition, the vote can become fragmented.
7. Alessia Russo – Arsenal
Nine Champions League goals put Alessia Russo firmly into this discussion.
Only Ewa Pajor scored more in the 2025/26 competition, while Russo finished with 11 combined goals and assists.
Her European campaign also included decisive knockout-stage performances, including a Player of the Match display against Chelsea.
Arsenal’s semi-final exit denied her the chance to strengthen that case in the final, but her numbers remain among the strongest of any English player on the nominee list.
8. Klara Bühl – Bayern Munich
Klara Bühl offers perhaps the best reminder that Ballon d’Or debates should not be reduced to goals.
She finished the Champions League campaign with eight assists, more than any other player.
That creative output placed her ahead of Putellas in the competition’s assist chart and underlined how central she was to Bayern’s attacking play.
Playmakers often receive less attention than prolific forwards in individual awards, but Bühl’s 2025/26 season deserves serious recognition.
9. Clàudia Pina – Barcelona
Clàudia Pina remains one of Barcelona’s most dangerous attacking players.
She had already built considerable momentum by finishing as the 2024/25 Champions League top scorer with 10 goals, and she continued to threaten regularly during the following campaign.
The challenge for Pina is comparative rather than individual.
Within Barcelona alone, Putellas and Pajor produced stronger headline cases during the title-winning run. That makes a victory difficult to envisage, but a high final placing would not be surprising.
10. Yui Hasegawa – Manchester City
Yui Hasegawa closes our Top 10 and brings a very different profile to the list.
She is not here because of a huge goals tally.
Her influence comes through positioning, ball retention, passing angles, tempo control and the ability to give Manchester City structure in midfield.
Players with that role are difficult to compare with elite scorers, but that does not make their contribution less important.
Hasegawa’s nomination reflects the level she continues to reach in one of football’s most demanding midfield roles.
Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 Nominees: Official List
The 30 Women’s Ballon d’Or nominees for 2026 were announced on 8 September.
The official shortlist includes:
| Player | Nationality |
|---|---|
| Selma Bacha | France |
| Barbra Banda | Zambia |
| Esmee Brugts | Netherlands |
| Klara Bühl | Germany |
| Mariona Caldentey | Spain |
| Scarlett Camberos | Mexico |
| Kerstin Casparij | Netherlands |
| Temwa Chawinga | Malawi |
| Cata Coll | Spain |
| Melchie Dumornay | Haiti |
| Caroline Graham Hansen | Norway |
| Alex Greenwood | England |
| Patri Guijarro | Spain |
| Pernille Harder | Denmark |
| Yui Hasegawa | Japan |
| Rose Lavelle | United States |
| Mapi León | Spain |
| Lorena | Brazil |
| Melvine Malard | France |
| Manaka Matsukubo | Japan |
| Vivianne Miedema | Netherlands |
| Ewa Pajor | Poland |
| Clàudia Pina | Spain |
| Alexia Putellas | Spain |
| Wendie Renard | France |
| Alessia Russo | England |
| Khadija Shaw | Jamaica |
| Momoko Tanikawa | Japan |
| Caroline Weir | Scotland |
| Tessa Wullaert | Belgium |
One useful takeaway from the shortlist is that every player in our current Top 10 has made the official nominee list.
That means the publication of the nominees does not force a major reset of our ranking. Instead, it gives us a confirmed field against which to judge the contenders.
Who Is the Favourite to Win the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or?
For now, Alexia Putellas is our pick.
Her Champions League season is difficult to look past: seven goals, seven assists, the European title and UEFA’s Player of the Season award.
But calling her an overwhelming favourite would go too far.
Pajor finished the competition with 11 goals and scored twice in the final. If the vote gives extra weight to decisive scoring moments, the difference between the Barcelona pair could be extremely small.
Dumornay and Harder make up the next tier.
Who Will Win the Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026?
Our current prediction is:
Alexia Putellas to win, with Ewa Pajor as her closest challenger.
That is a narrower call than it may appear.
Putellas has the broader all-round résumé; Pajor has the more explosive scoring case. Both helped Barcelona win Europe’s biggest club competition.
Melchie Dumornay is the strongest alternative outside Barcelona in our ranking, while Pernille Harder and Khadija Shaw complete our Top Five.
Why the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or Race Looks Different
There was no Women’s World Cup, Women’s EURO or Olympic football tournament in 2026.
That matters.
In years with a major international tournament, a handful of matches can completely reshape the Ballon d’Or conversation. In 2026, the 2025/26 club season carries more weight as a point of comparison.
The Women’s Champions League is particularly useful because so many of the leading candidates faced one another directly.
Barcelona’s title helps explain why Putellas and Pajor lead our ranking, while deep European runs also strengthened the cases of Dumornay, Harder, Russo and Bühl.
Domestic leagues and international matches still count. They simply do not provide one single tournament narrative comparable to a World Cup or EURO.
Why Aitana Bonmatí Is Not in the 2026 Nominee List
One name is conspicuously missing: Aitana Bonmatí.
The Barcelona and Spain midfielder won the Ballon d’Or Féminin in 2023, 2024 and 2025, becoming the first woman to win the award three times in succession.
She is not among the 30 nominees in 2026.
That guarantees one major change: there will be a different Women’s Ballon d’Or winner this year.
Bonmatí nevertheless remains the record holder with three titles.
When Is the Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026?
The 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony will take place on Monday, 26 October 2026 at the London Palladium Theatre.
London is hosting the ceremony for the first time.
The move also coincides with the 70th anniversary of the original Ballon d’Or, first awarded to England’s Stanley Matthews in 1956.
The Women’s Ballon d’Or and men’s Ballon d’Or will be presented during the same ceremony.
For the broader event details, see our 2026 Ballon d’Or rankings and ceremony coverage.
Who Won the Women’s Ballon d’Or in 2025?
Aitana Bonmatí won the 2025 Ballon d’Or Féminin, completing a remarkable hat-trick after also taking the award in 2023 and 2024.
That run made her the most successful player in the history of the women’s award.
Putellas sits immediately behind her with two victories.
Previous Women’s Ballon d’Or Winners
The Ballon d’Or Féminin was introduced in 2018.
| Year | Winner | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Aitana Bonmatí | Barcelona |
| 2024 | Aitana Bonmatí | Barcelona |
| 2023 | Aitana Bonmatí | Barcelona |
| 2022 | Alexia Putellas | Barcelona |
| 2021 | Alexia Putellas | Barcelona |
| 2020 | No award | — |
| 2019 | Megan Rapinoe | Reign FC |
| 2018 | Ada Hegerberg | Olympique Lyonnais |
No award was presented in 2020.
Who Has Won the Most Women’s Ballon d’Or Awards?
Aitana Bonmatí holds the record with three titles.
| Player | Titles | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
| Aitana Bonmatí | 3 | 2023, 2024, 2025 |
| Alexia Putellas | 2 | 2021, 2022 |
| Ada Hegerberg | 1 | 2018 |
| Megan Rapinoe | 1 | 2019 |
Putellas therefore has an additional historical incentive in 2026: victory would bring her level with Bonmatí on three.
How Is the Women’s Ballon d’Or Winner Decided?
The Ballon d’Or Féminin is presented by France Football and has been co-organised with UEFA since 2024.
The award is judged over the relevant football season rather than the calendar year.
The principal criteria include:
- individual performances and decisive impact;
- collective performances and achievements;
- class and fair play.
The emphasis on individual performance is important.
Winning the Champions League strengthens a player’s case, but the trophy does not automatically go to the best player from the winning team.
That is why Dumornay, Harder, Shaw, Russo and other nominees remain relevant even with Barcelona players occupying the top two places in our ranking.
Is There an Official Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 Ranking?
Not yet.
There is now an official list of 30 nominees, but there is no official final Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 ranking at this stage.
The distinction matters:
Official: the 30-player nominee list published on 8 September.
Editorial: the PlayersRanked Top 10 shown on this page.
Our power ranking compares the nominees using performances, statistics, trophies and influence in important matches.
The official finishing order will only become known through the award vote.
Ballon d’Or Féminin vs Men’s Ballon d’Or
The Ballon d’Or Féminin and men’s Ballon d’Or reward the standout players in women’s and men’s football respectively.
| Women’s Ballon d’Or | Men’s Ballon d’Or |
|---|---|
| Introduced in 2018 | Introduced in 1956 |
| Women’s football | Men’s football |
| Record: Aitana Bonmatí – 3 | Record: Lionel Messi – 8 |
| 2025 winner: Aitana Bonmatí | 2025 winner: Ousmane Dembélé |
| 2026 ceremony: 26 October | 2026 ceremony: 26 October |
The sporting context is quite different this year.
The men’s race was heavily shaped by the 2026 FIFA World Cup, while the women’s award depends much more heavily on the completed club season.
You can compare the two races in our men’s Ballon d’Or 2026 power ranking.
Final Prediction: Who Wins the Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026?
The confirmation of the nominees has narrowed the field, but it has not changed our No. 1.
Alexia Putellas remains the PlayersRanked favourite.
Her 14 Champions League goal contributions, European title and Player of the Season award give her the best all-round case.
Ewa Pajor is close enough to make the decision uncomfortable. Eleven European goals and a two-goal performance in the final are powerful arguments in their own right.
Behind them, Melchie Dumornay, Pernille Harder and Khadija Shaw make up our current Top Five.
For now, our prediction is Putellas first, Pajor second.
That ranking will be reviewed again if new information materially changes the picture before the ceremony on 26 October.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the favourite to win the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or?
Alexia Putellas currently leads the PlayersRanked Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 ranking. Ewa Pajor is her closest challenger, with Melchie Dumornay and Pernille Harder also among the leading contenders.
What are the current Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 rankings?
Our current Top Five is Alexia Putellas, Ewa Pajor, Melchie Dumornay, Pernille Harder and Khadija Shaw. The PlayersRanked Top 10 is an editorial power ranking rather than the official final result.
Who are the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or nominees?
The official shortlist contains 30 players. Alexia Putellas, Ewa Pajor, Melchie Dumornay, Pernille Harder, Khadija Shaw, Alessia Russo, Caroline Graham Hansen and Klara Bühl are among the nominees.
When were the Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 nominees announced?
The official 30-player Women’s Ballon d’Or shortlist was announced on 8 September 2026.
Is there an official Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026 ranking?
No. The official nominee list has been published, but the final ranking has not yet been determined. The ranking on this page is the PlayersRanked editorial prediction.
Who will win the Women’s Ballon d’Or 2026?
PlayersRanked currently predicts Alexia Putellas to win, with Ewa Pajor as her closest challenger. Melchie Dumornay and Pernille Harder form the next group of contenders.
Is Aitana Bonmatí nominated for the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or?
No. Aitana Bonmatí, winner in 2023, 2024 and 2025, is not among the 30 nominees for the 2026 award.
When is the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or?
The award will be presented on Monday, 26 October 2026 at the London Palladium Theatre in London.
Who won the Women’s Ballon d’Or in 2025?
Aitana Bonmatí won the 2025 Ballon d’Or Féminin, securing her third consecutive title after her victories in 2023 and 2024.
Who has won the most Women’s Ballon d’Or awards?
Aitana Bonmatí holds the record with three titles. Alexia Putellas has won twice, while Ada Hegerberg and Megan Rapinoe have each won once.
Who scored the most Women’s Champions League goals in 2025/26?
Ewa Pajor finished as the competition’s top scorer with 11 goals. Alessia Russo scored nine and Pernille Harder eight.
What is the difference between the nominee list and the PlayersRanked ranking?
The 30-player nominee list is official. The PlayersRanked Top 10 is an editorial power ranking that evaluates the nominated players based on performances, statistics, trophies and influence in major matches.
