Harry Kane hopes he can make himself the leading contender for the Ballon d’Or by helping fire England to World Cup glory.
The England captain enjoyed another standout campaign with Bayern Munich, scoring 61 goals across all competitions – including a hat-trick in the DFB-Pokal final as Vincent Kompany’s side completed a domestic double.
Kane’s form will be key to England’s hopes of World Cup success, with the majority of Thomas Tuchel’s 26-man squad having now arrived in Florida for their pre-tournament warm-up camp.
The 32-year-old knows the weight of expectation which will be ahead in the coming weeks and has his sights set on delivering at the highest level again.
“The Ballon d’Or if we win the World Cup? I would certainly be among the favourites,” Kane said in an interview with L’Equipe that was conducted ahead of joining up with the England squad.
“Considering the trophies I’ve won this season and the number of goals I’ve scored, I would be in the running.
“Especially since, if England win the World Cup, we could imagine the trophy going to an English player.
“When you look at who the current favourites are to win the Ballon d’Or, there is (Bayern Munich’s) Michael (Olise), players who were Champions League finalists and me.
“But at the same time, I’m not the kind of person who claims to deserve a Ballon d’Or. I try to let my performances on the pitch speak for themselves.”
Former Chelsea boss Tuchel is determined to help England make the next step from the progress made under Sir Gareth Southgate and deliver a first tournament success since 1966.
Having worked under Tuchel during the German coach’s spell in charge of Bayern, Kane has full confidence in the direction he is taking the current squad.
“At Bayern, I loved his personality, his ideas for the team, and the way he got me playing. In a way, he brought those methods to the national team,” Kane said.
England captain Kane added: “The ambition is to win it (the World Cup), obviously, that has to be our goal.
“We know it will be difficult, but we have been close in recent years to winning a major tournament – we reached two Euro finals (in 2021 and 2024), a semi-final (in 2018) and a quarter-final (in 2022) of the World Cup.
“This year, we will have a new coach, new players. It is exciting – even if this kind of competition generates a lot of pressure.”
