France football legend, Jean-Pierre Papin has criticised Kylian Mbappé’s approach to his 2026 Ballon d’Or campaign, arguing that the Real Madrid forward’s public efforts to promote his individual achievements worked against him.
Papin, who won the Ballon d’Or in 1991, made the comments after Mbappé finished second behind England captain Harry Kane in the 2026 award voting in London on Monday, October 26.
The 27-year-old recorded the highest finish of his career in the competition, with Kane emerging as the only player ahead of him.
Speaking on RMC’s Rothen s’enflamme programme on Wednesday, Papin questioned Mbappé’s public communication strategy, drawing comparisons between the Frenchman and Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.
According to comments translated by Goal, Papin said: “Mbappé’s communication was terrible for him, as it somewhat reflected the nature of his personality. And that is unfortunate when you have all this talent and play for a club like Real Madrid. He reminds me a little of Cristiano Ronaldo, as others were supposed to put themselves at his service.”
The former Marseille striker also acknowledged Mbappé’s impressive goal-scoring ability but insisted that his public campaign for the award negatively affected his chances.
He added: “In terms of effectiveness, he is not far from what Cristiano Ronaldo used to offer, but his media campaign turned against him to some extent.”
Mbappé had openly backed his chances of winning the award in the weeks leading up to the ceremony, insisting that his individual performances made him the strongest candidate.
Speaking to France Football, the Real Madrid forward declared: “There is no one better than me last season.”
However, Real Madrid ended the 2025-26 campaign without winning a major trophy, leaving Mbappé’s individual statistics as the strongest argument in his favour.
Despite his criticism, Papin believes the France captain has the ability to win football’s most prestigious individual award in the future.
“I am convinced he will win the Ballon d’Or, as he has the talent required for it,” Papin said.
“This year was not his last chance, it was indeed a great opportunity, but he still has a road he needs to travel.”
Meanwhile, Mbappé’s impressive goal-scoring form has continued despite missing out on the award.
The forward scored 42 goals in 44 appearances last season and has already registered 14 goals in 13 matches in the new campaign.
His recent performances include a brace against Barcelona in El Clasico, taking his overall tally to 100 goals for Real Madrid.