Mikel Oyarzabal, top scorer of the 2026 World Cup, left out of Ballon d'Or shortlist

The publication of the 30-man Ballon d'Or shortlist has set the debate alight in Spanish football. Mikel Oyarzabal, Real Sociedad captain, World Cup winner with Spain in 2026 and the tournament's top scorer, is not among the candidates for the award. His absence has landed like a cold shower on Real Sociedad and Spain supporters, who see it as impossible to explain that one of the tournament's standout figures has been overlooked.

• Oyarzabal was Spain's top scorer at the 2026 World Cup, the tournament La Roja won.
• He is the only major figure among the World Cup's leading scorers missing from the 30-man shortlist.
• Players with a far smaller role at the tournament or competing in the Saudi league, such as Sadio Mané and Julián Quiñones, did make the list.
• Ferran Torres, usually Oyarzabal's backup in the national team, is among the 30 nominees.
• The Basque forward also lifted the Copa del Rey with Real Sociedad during an outstanding season.

A season to remember with no individual reward

From a collective standpoint, Mikel Oyarzabal's season could hardly have been better. He lifted the Copa del Rey with Real Sociedad as captain and cornerstone of the side, acting as the footballing and spiritual leader of a team that got its hands on silverware once again. Individually, his performance remained at a stellar level throughout the campaign, with goals, assists and that knack of showing up in decisive moments that has made him an undisputed reference point in San Sebastián.

The crowning moment came at the 2026 World Cup. Oyarzabal was one of Spain's star performers, the tournament's top scorer and a permanent fixture in La Roja's system. His contribution proved decisive as Spain were crowned world champions, a milestone that in any other context would have been enough to guarantee him a place among the Ballon d'Or contenders.

World Cup top scorers and the comparative injustice

A closer look at the list of nominees makes the omission even more painful. Among the leading scorers at the World Cup, Oyarzabal is the only major name missing. His fellow goalscorers and other key figures from the tournament all feature among the 30 candidates, creating a sense of unfairness that is difficult to swallow.

The controversy deepens when reviewing some of the profiles included. The list features players who played a notably smaller role at the tournament or who compete in less demanding leagues. The names of Sadio Mané and Julián Quiñones, both plying their trade in Saudi football, appear among the chosen ones, a decision that stands in stark contrast to the absence of Real Sociedad's number 10.

Ferran Torres is in, the starter is not: the list's contradiction

One of the details generating the most noise is the presence of Ferran Torres among the 30 nominees. The Valencia-born forward, usually Oyarzabal's backup in the Spain side during the World Cup, did make the final cut. Nobody questions Ferran's merits for being on the list, but it is hard to understand how the regular substitute is included while the undisputed starter is not.

That contradiction sums up the prevailing feeling: the award has left out a player who was decisive on the biggest possible stage, the World Cup, and who also delivered an outstanding club season. The overwhelming sense among large sections of the fanbase is that the Ballon d'Or has once again shown its disconnect from what actually happens on the pitch.

Fan reaction and a bitter aftertaste

The outrage has spread quickly across social media and opinion circles. Real Sociedad and Spain fans believe Oyarzabal deserved, at the very least, explicit recognition among the best players on the planet. His status as world champion, the tournament's top scorer and a Copa del Rey winner with his club made his inclusion seem almost certain, yet it never came.

The Ballon d'Or decision leaves a bitter aftertaste and confirms the disconnect between individual awards and real merit on the pitch.

What this snub means for the Ballon d'Or

Oyarzabal's omission reignites a recurring debate: the credibility of individual awards. When a player wins the World Cup as the tournament's top scorer and does not even make the 30-man shortlist, something feels off. The decision fuels the perception that the Ballon d'Or responds to criteria that do not always match sporting performance.

The case of the Real Sociedad captain will go down as one of the great injustices of this edition, a year in which Spanish football, fresh from World Cup glory, feels particularly hard done by due to the absence of one of its most decisive figures.