How chaos erupted behind the curtain on Harry Kane's big night: I watched embarrassment for Strictly star John Nellis, fights and upset stars - and conspiracy theories were flying, writes NATHAN SALT at the Palladium
On an evening that rewards the best in class, London's hosting of the 2026 Ballon d'Or fell horribly short.
Clashes between fans and security that put a risk alert on the red carpet outside. A 45-minute delay to the ceremony even getting underway. Frantic phone calls to delete three articles that claimed to reveal the 'winner' on the award's website hours before it became a reality. A failed YouTube stunt by Strictly Come Dancing's John Nellis. Filming violations in the auditorium. Players criticising officials for poor planning and logistics.
Glitzy events at the scale of the Ballon d'Or are often laced with problems, and sometimes those problems can be out of the organisers' control.
That was not the case last night.
It was Daily Mail Sport who first alerted those on the ground at the London Palladium to the presence of three articles on the official Ballon d'Or website which claimed that each of Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal had won the main prize.
A series of frantic phone calls and WhatsApp messages were sent off, with our accreditation photographed for some unknown reason, and within 32 minutes, all three articles were removed.
There was chaos at the glitzy Ballon d'Or - on a night laced with problems for organisers
Outside on the red carpet, more drama was brewing with conspiracy theories rife
Chaos at London Palladium's glitzy Ballon d'Or ceremony
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'Portraits of some Ballon d'Or nominees prepared by Ballondor.com were inadvertently published online,' a statement read.
'These articles had been prepared in advance for all nominees in the event of a win. They do not, in any way, reveal the podium, which remains unknown to everyone at this time.'
By that stage, the damage was done and conspiracies swirled. As it ended up – and as everyone realised immediately – they were the top three in the voting. That was obvious the minute the mistake was made.
Outside on the red carpet, more drama was brewing, not least when one photographer was grabbed by a security guard, who appeared to thrust his head towards him, as he walked through DAZN's live broadcast.
Much like a Formula One gridwalk, red carpets are notoriously chaotic but this moment went viral and was a poor look for the organiser, and of course their security detail.
Squeezing between presenters Lianne Sanderson and Fabrizio Romano, the unaware photographer brushed past them before he was physically halted.
Footage shared on social media showed crowds being forced back by security as they attempted to gain access to the Ballon d'Or red carpet at the London Palladium (Source: TikTok: @winstonso7)
A photographer was seen clashing with a security guard on the event's official broadcast after he was pulled back on the red carpet (Source: DAZN)
'Stop grabbing me!' the photographer was picked up shouting by the red carpet microphones.
It was a short flare-up that paled into insignificance compared to the serious pressures put on those standing in front of barriers, desperately trying to stop hundreds of rabid fans from breaching the exterior security wall.
Organisers were alerted to the problems outside but provided no statement of any kind to Daily Mail Sport when asked what had failed in their logistical operation outside.
Various videos that surfaced on X and TikTok showed metal barriers being pushed and thrown, with one French journalist capturing a moment near the entrance to the London Palladium in which police and stewards desperately tried to push back a growing group trying to break through to the red carpet.
When Kylian Mbappe came into view near the Oxford Street Entrance, security found themselves overwhelmed, but did manage to prevent any football fan from getting onto the red carpet, despite clashes.
Amid all the chaos in London, the Ballon d'Or made a series of preventable gaffes on its own social media pages.
Strictly Come Dancing contestant John Nellis conducted a botched stunt at the ceremony. (Source: Instagram/John Nellis)
Nellis has become a star on Strictly but he had his tail between his legs at the Palladium
On the biggest night of the year for the Ballon d'Or, its social media accounts spoke of Jude Bellingham finishing in '11st' place and Pau Cubarsi finishing '12nd'.
There was also a video of Kane arriving with wife Katie Goodland. The caption? 'Harry Kane & Michael Olise!' It looked amateur.
So, by the time people filtered into the auditorium, eyebrows had long been raised at how so many things appeared to be going wrong. Then came the announcement over the theatre's PA system: the ceremony was delayed. No explanation as to why. It transpired traffic jams meant organisers were 45 minutes behind schedule.
At the players' hotel, clubs and star players were extremely irritable. It didn't take long for those in the French media to report on the discontent, not least from former Ballon d'Or winner Ousmane Dembele.
RMC Sport disclosed that Dembele had to wait for around an hour at his hotel before heading to the Palladium, with claims of there being no refreshments in place to welcome players. Many top executives are said to have taken a dim view.
In a bizarre scene, minutes before the ceremony started, YouTuber and Strictly Come Dancing contestant John Nellis was seen guiding another man in a blindfold towards the front of the stage and approaching the compere.
'He's been blindfolded with headphones on in isolation for four hours,' Nellis was heard explaining, as he made a request to have a star player surprise his friend, who was totally unaware (apparently) of his surroundings.
Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele both failed to stand to shake Harry Kane's hand at the Ballon d'Or ceremony in London on Monday night. (Source: X/Kyks98)
Harry Kane and his wife Kate Goodland shared a kiss after he won the striker award (left) and Ballon d'Or (right) on Monday night
Nellis, who has amassed more than 20 million followers on his social media pages, was told his stunt would not be possible. He had to go back to his seat with his tail between his legs. We now await the inevitable YouTube video.
And so the ceremony finally got underway, albeit with a teleprompter that wasn't ready, according to co-host Thierry Henry.
Awards were handed out, many against the backdrop of loud heckles from the upper tier, with very vocal Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid fans in attendance.
Dembele's acceptance speech for PSG winning Men's Club of the Year was barely audible. Stewards in the upper tier showed no ability to quell the heckles and shouts.
Instead the focus was on monitoring media members like a hawk to make sure they weren't filming or taking photos, something numerous journalists in attendance ignored.
By the time Kane landed the top gong – there were few hiccups between the start and the end aside from Rafa Benitez being handed the wrong card for Coaches of the Year – there will have been a relief to wind the evening down.
Stars were ushered back down the red carpet, only to find a backlog of them trying to get into private cars. By 11:36pm the carpet was packed with many vehicles unable to reach pick-up points due to the size of crowds still outside clamouring for photos.
It was a night to reward excellence, put on against a backdrop of mistakes more worthy of slapstick comedy.
But no mention of the attempt to break into the ceremony by so-called 'students', and the deployment of a riot-police shield wall outside the venue? Funny, that!
Did he fall down on stage and be overdramatic there too? Or does he just flop on the field?
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