Who can stop Lamine Yamal dominating the Ballon d’Or for the next decade? Predicting the next 10 winners of the Golden Ball

The World Cup will no doubt have a major bearing on the Ballon d’Or – as it so often does – and with the 2030 tournament being played in Morocco, Portugal and Spain, we’re looking mainly at players from those three countries here.

It would obviously be a great thing for defenders if the outstanding Achraf Hakimi were to triumph but, knowing the voters, that’s just not going to happen.

Midfielders obviously have more of a chance, as underlined by the recent wins for Luka Modric and Rodri, so the likes of Vitinha, Joao Neves and Pedri are undoubtedly in with a chance.

But it’s impossible to look past the electrifying Yamal, who should light up a World Cup on home soil and belatedly take home his first Ballon d’Or.