Spain midfielder Alexia Putellas has won the Ballon d’Or Féminin for a record-equalling third time, extending Spain’s dominance of the prestigious women’s football award to six consecutive years.
The 32-year-old enjoyed a memorable 2025-26 campaign, captaining Barcelona to Champions League glory as part of a quadruple-winning season before joining Women’s Super League (WSL) side London City Lionesses in July.
Putellas now shares the record of three Ballon d’Or Féminin titles with her Spain team-mate Aitana Bonmatí, who won the award in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Putellas claimed the honour in 2021 and 2022 before returning to the top of women’s football.
The Spanish duo have won the last six editions of the award, continuing the country’s remarkable run. Norway’s Ada Hegerberg, in 2018, and the United States’ Megan Rapinoe, in 2019, were the last non-Spanish winners.
Putellas’ latest triumph marks an extraordinary comeback after a career-threatening anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in 2022 threatened to derail her career.
Delivering an inspiring message to aspiring footballers, Putellas said: “All the boys and girls around the world — if you love football and if you want to play football, play football. It doesn’t matter if you’re a boy or if you’re a girl.”
She added: “Doesn’t matter where you come from. Don’t listen if someone tells you, you can’t do it. Believe in yourself.”
Putellas topped the voting conducted by an international panel of journalists representing the top 50 countries in FIFA’s rankings. Barcelona striker Ewa Pajor finished second, while Manchester City forward Khadija Shaw secured third place.
Meanwhile, England captain Harry Kane won the men’s Ballon d’Or, becoming the first English player to claim the honour since Michael Owen in 2001.
