How Kane defied doubters to become world's best

Harry Kane is the humble 'anti-superstar' who defied doubters to achieve Ballon d'Or greatness, says chief football writer Phil McNulty. Harry Kane has taken the scenic route to the Ballon d'Or – a road littered with doubts and diversions, but one that eventually led to the ultimate destination: being crowned as the world's best player. The 33-year-old's glory at the London Palladium on Monday is fitting reward for an exemplary career that has seen records fall at his feet for England, Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich. Kane is England's top goalscorer with 91 goals. He has 125 England caps, joint-highest with Peter Shilton. He is Spurs' record scorer with 280 goals in 435 appearances.

He scored a remarkable 73 goals in 65 games for Bayern Munich and England during the 2025–26 season. This is the Kane of recent vintage, the world-class striker and complete footballer who beat Real Madrid and France striker Kylian Mbappe, as well as Spain's teenage Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal, to the sport's biggest personal honour. Kane's humility has seen him described as an 'anti-superstar' and his achievement has been commended both inside and outside the football world. One post on social media from Kane as he celebrated the greatest moment of his career said it all: "Work hard in silence. Let success be your noise." It