Ballon d’Or organiser pursues complaint over suspicious bets
Ballon d’Or organiser Groupe Amaury is pursuing a legal complaint after suspicious bets on the award’s exact top-five ranking raised concerns that results may have been leaked before the ceremony.
Groupe Amaury is pursuing a legal complaint following allegations that advance knowledge of the 2026 Ballon d’Or results may have been used to place profitable bets.The owner of France Football, which awards the trophy, said investigations were under way after unusual betting activity was identified on prediction platform Polymarket before the ceremony in London.In a statement, Groupe Amaury said: “The integrity of the Ballon d’Or is an absolute priority. We wish to reiterate that the winner is awarded the Ballon d’Or following an independent vote.“We take allegations of leaks of the results and potentially fraudulent betting very seriously. Investigations are under way to verify the facts and determine any responsibilities. A legal complaint is being filed.”The concerns centre on bets predicting the precise order of the first five players: Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal, Rodri and Lionel Messi.Kane received the award on October 26, with the final ranking matching the order backed by the accounts under scrutiny.An investigation by Upside identified 12 newly created accounts that placed a combined US$264,000 on the exact top five, reportedly generating approximately €179,000 in winnings.Seven of those accounts had no previous betting history, while six placed their first wager within 15 minutes of being created.Those patterns have raised questions about whether the account holders had access to confidential information, although a leak and fraudulent conduct have not been established.The bets were placed on Polymarket, which allows users to trade on the outcomes of news and other events and is prohibited in France.The investigation concerns the possible disclosure and use of the ranking before its public announcement, rather than an established finding that the voting itself was manipulated.Amaury emphasised the independence of the vote in its response, distinguishing the process that determines the award from the handling of confidential results ahead of the ceremony.The statement did not identify anyone suspected of leaking information or establish whether the accounts were connected to one another.Nor has it been established whether the people behind the wagers had any relationship with the award’s organisers or others involved in preparing the event.The proposed complaint brings the allegations into a legal process alongside the investigations already described by Amaury, with responsibility for any improper disclosure still to be determined.The group added that it could not provide further details while those investigations continued.