Not frustration, just ambition, Mbappé targets Ballon d’Or after World Cup scoring record

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Kylian Mbappé says he is targeting his first Ballon d’Or award and believes “this could be a good year for me” after setting a World Cup scoring record.

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The France and Real Madrid forward, speaking to CNN Sports on Wednesday, said he had no “frustration” over not having won the individual award but admitted that he wanted to add it to his list of achievements.

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“A frustration? No,” he told CNN Sports about never having won it.

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“Because, as a competitor, you always want to win everything. So at the end of the day, of course you want to win it, every player wants to win it, but we have to wait.”

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Mbappé, 27, did not win any silverware with Real Madrid last season and France finished fourth at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

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However, he had a record-breaking tournament, scoring his 22nd World Cup goal in France’s third-place playoff against England to become the competition’s all-time leading scorer.

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“It’s something that I couldn’t imagine,” he said about the achievement.

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“We saw all the greatest players of all time, all the greatest athletes, all the greatest icons that I idolized when I was younger, and to be able to be this guy at only 27, it sounds surreal.

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“At the end of the day, it’s part of history, part of the legacy that I want to build.”

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Mbappé said he still had a chance of winning the Ballon d’Or and argued that the award should recognise individual performance rather than being determined solely by collective success.

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“Football is a collective sport, but there are collective trophies to represent that collective supremacy,” he told CNN Sports.

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“When you talk about the Ballon d’Or, you give it to one player, so you give it to the best player, and the guy who shows you that he is the best, and every big competition shows something.”

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Mbappé is among the leading contenders for the award alongside Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal and Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane, while Lionel Messi is also receiving support for a record-extending ninth Ballon d’Or after his performances for Argentina at the World Cup.

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The Ballon d’Or ceremony is scheduled to take place in London on Oct. 26.

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Mbappé will also begin a new era with France under former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane, who replaced Didier Deschamps after the World Cup.

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Zidane has confirmed Mbappé will remain France captain as the team begins preparations for the 2030 World Cup.

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“Another era starting in the national team, we are really happy to have him (Zidane). Let’s see what we’re gonna do. I think everybody expects a lot from us,” Mbappé said.

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“We are one of the best teams in the world, everybody saw. But we have to work on the details to be the best in the world, and I think also everybody saw that.

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“At the end of the day, it was an amazing experience for us because I think we gave pleasure to fans all around the world, but we didn’t achieve what we wanted to achieve. But I cannot say it’s a failure.”

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