Lamine Yamal’s uncle, Abdul Abdellaoui, has questioned Harry Kane’s 2026 Ballon d’Or victory, insisting that the Barcelona youngster was more deserving of football’s most prestigious individual award.

Abdellaoui expressed his disappointment following Monday night’s ceremony at London’s Palladium Theatre, where Kane was crowned the 2026 Ballon d’Or winner ahead of Kylian Mbappe and Yamal.

The Bayern Munich striker finished first, with Mbappe taking second place and the 19-year-old Barcelona sensation settling for third.

Although Yamal missed out on the main award, he secured the Young Talent of the Year prize for the third consecutive time, further underlining his impressive development.

However, his uncle believes the teenager deserved greater recognition for his performances throughout the 2025/26 campaign.

Speaking to El Larguero after the ceremony, Abdellaoui openly backed his nephew and questioned the decision to award Kane the prestigious honour.

“Everyone knows it, my nephew was the best player in the world. He was absolutely incredible,” he said.

He also encouraged football supporters to appreciate Yamal’s overall contribution rather than focusing exclusively on Kane’s goalscoring achievements.

Although Abdellaoui acknowledged the Bayern Munich forward’s ability to find the net, he argued that Yamal offered more to his team through his creativity, technical ability and influence on matches.

He also suggested that the Barcelona youngster’s age might have influenced the voting, believing some voters could have overlooked him because they expect him to have several more opportunities to win the award.

According to Abdellaoui, the argument that Yamal is still young and has plenty of time to claim the Ballon d’Or should not take away from what he has already achieved.

The teenager enjoyed an impressive 2025/26 season with Barcelona and Spain, contributing goals, assists and outstanding attacking performances while helping his team compete for major honours.

Despite his disappointment, Abdellaoui remains convinced that his nephew will eventually collect multiple Ballon d’Or trophies.

He also believes Yamal will quickly overcome the disappointment of finishing third, expressing confidence that the young forward will remain focused on his football.

For now, Kane has claimed the biggest individual prize, but Abdellaoui’s comments have added another talking point to the debate surrounding the 2026 Ballon d’Or results.