With the semi-finals almost done, we’re deep into the business end of the World Cup 2026. Spain just secured the first final spot after eliminating France, one of the tournament’s favourites, per the World Cup 2026 odds, while England and Argentina will fight for the other spot on the other side of the bracket.
These four teams wouldn’t have reached this far if it weren’t for their stars, who lived up to the hype. Along with helping their nations win games, these standouts also created numerous World Cup 2026 highlights, making them viable candidates for this year’s Golden Ball award.
The Golden Ball award is essentially the Most Valuable Player trophy. Introduced at the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, the honor is decided by a vote of accredited media, working from a shortlist compiled by FIFA’s Technical Study Group. The runners-up in that vote collect the Silver and Bronze Ball.
So, who gets your vote? If you ask us, here are our SBOTOP picks.
Kylian Mbappe, France
France may have dropped out of the World Cup after their humbling 2-0 defeat to Spain earlier today, but that shouldn’t take away from the fact that Kylian Mbappe has been among the best players of this summer’s quadrennial tournament. The Real Madrid striker has been one of the finals’ top scorers with eight goals and three assists. Mbappe has gone goal for goal with Lionel Messi thus far, but has one more assist.
He opened his campaign with back-to-back braces against Senegal (3-1) and Iraq (3-0) before assisting twice in Les Bleus’ 4-1 rout of Norway in the group-stage finale. Because of Mbappe’s efforts, France were one of the three teams to progress to the knockouts with a 100-per cent record, alongside Mexico and Argentina.
Mbappe notched another brace against Sweden in the Round of 32 (3-0) before scoring the marginal penalty in France’s ill-tempered 1-0 victory against pesky Paraguay in the Round of 16. During the quarter-finals, he was responsible for their two goals against Morocco (one goal, one assist).
But against Spain, Mbappe was shut down. He was limited to just 15 touches in the first half, representing the lowest involvement of any outfield player on the pitch during the first 45 minutes of the match. His frustrations boiled over in the 86th minute when he received a yellow card for sending goalkeeper Unai Simon to the grass.
Lionel Messi, Argentina
Argentina won’t make it this far if it weren’t for Lionel Messi’s magic, and it’s quite an understatement, as the Inter Miami star bailed La Albiceleste out multiple times this year.
After a smooth run in Group J, where they won all their games against Algeria (3-0), Austria (2-0), and Jordan (3-1), Lionel Scaloni’s men were pushed to the limit by Cape Verde and Egypt in the Round of 32 and 16, before their relatively easier win over Switzerland in the quarter-finals (though they also needed extra time to put them away).
Fans got the full Messi experience during their 3-2 win against Egypt. Argentina trailed by two goals and looked destined to bow out, but the 39-year-old forward had other plans. First, he teed up Cristian Romero to head home in the 79th minute before scoring the leveller in the 83rd minute. Enzo Fernandez capped off La Albiceleste’s comeback, scoring the third goal in stoppage time after a long ball from Lautaro Martinez.
As noted, Messi is the joint-top scorer of this summer’s tournament with eight goals and two assists. He broke several records this year when he became the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer (21 goals) and playmaker (nine assists). And now, he’s two wins away from completing a repeat for Argentina.
Jude Bellingham, England
England are lucky to have a player like Jude Bellingham, who, like Messi, has bailed out the Three Lions multiple times this tournament. The Real Madrid midfielder is also in the running for this year’s Golden Boot award with six goals and one assist.
Bellingham scored against Croatia (4-2) and Panama (2-0) to help the Three Lions seize the top spot in Group L. He didn’t score in their 2-1 win against DR Congo in the Round of 32, but Bellingham took over in their next matches against Mexico (3-2) and Norway (2-1).
The hostile crowd in the Azteca didn’t faze Bellingham, who scored a brace in the first half, giving England just enough to win (since they were reduced to 10 men). He followed it up with another brace against Norway, sparking a comeback from one goal down after Andreas Schjelderup scored.
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