Harry Kane won England’s first Ballon d’Or in 25 years on Monday in his hometown of London, defeating Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappe.

Alexia Putellas won the women’s honor for the third time, extending Spain’s dominance over the accolade, thanks to her part in leading Barcelona to the Champions League previous season before joining the London City Lionesses.

The inaugural Ballon d’Or ceremony on English soil began inauspiciously, with London traffic causing a nearly hour-long delay and several of the major names arriving late.

But there was a happy ending for the hometown hero, as Kane collected the highest achievement of his career, becoming the first Englishman to win the trophy since Michael Owen in 2001.

Last season, the 33-year-old Bayern Munich forward scored 73 goals in 65 games for club and country, helping the German giants win the league and the cup.

He also scored six goals when England placed third in the World Cup.

“I love to represent my country and to bring this trophy back to them and have an English winner I think is something that’s really, really special, especially here in London,” Kane told the National news. “What a crazy nite and I’m really, really happy.”

Despite being England and Tottenham’s all-time leading goalscorer, Kane’s medal tally is restricted to German domestic victories.

He was on Spurs’ losing side in the 2019 Champions League final against Liverpool, and he has twice suffered defeat in the European Championship final versus England.

But since joining Bayern in 2023, his extraordinary goal-scoring consistency has earned him the top individual prize in football.

“Moving to Bayern Munich was a huge step forward in my career,” Kane told AFP earlier. “Some people saw it as a risk but for me it was always about improving and seeing if I could get better around the teammates, the team, the club and it has pushed me onto another level.