Exclusive interviews and special ballot lists: the fierce battle for the Ballon d'Or

100 journalists vote Monday night in London to decide the Ballon d'Or winner; Dutch voter Frans van den Nieuwenhof reveals campaigns and lobbying attempts influence the process.

The Ballon d'Or, football's most prestigious individual award, will be decided Monday at 21:00 in London by 100 journalists voting on a shortlist of 30 players nominated by France Football. Dutch voter Frans van den Nieuwenhof, who has participated for nearly 25 years, describes how the process has become increasingly subject to lobbying and campaign pressure as the award's importance has grown.

Van den Nieuwenhof, who joined the voting panel after working for Sportweek and Voetbal International and building relationships with France Football and L'Équipe journalists since the 1998 World Cup, explains the three voting criteria: individual performance, team performance, and fair play. He says voters are completely free to choose and have never been pressured to reconsider their selections.

However, he has witnessed questionable voting patterns, including average players receiving unusually high scores, and this year received emails from Georgia about Kvaratschelia and from Harry Kane's representatives offering an exclusive interview. Bookmakers favour Kane as the top contender, followed by Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappé. Among women, Alexia Putellas is favoured to win for a third time, though three Dutch players—Vivianne Miedema, Esmee Brugts, and Kerstin Casparij—are nominated but considered unlikely winners.