Fabian Ruiz would be honoured to be considered for the Ballon d'Or, having won the Champions League with Paris Saint-Germain and the World Cup with Spain.

With many of football's biggest stars falling short of major silverware in 2025-26, the next Ballon d'Or award, which will be decided in October, looks to be up for grabs.

Lionel Messi would likely have been the favourite if Argentina had beaten Spain in last week's World Cup final, while Lamine Yamal failed to light up the tournament for the eventual winners, only scoring one goal and not assisting any.

Kylian Mbappe won the World Cup Golden Boot with 11 goals but failed to land a single trophy with France or Real Madrid, while Harry Kane was unable to inspire England to a World Cup final appearance after leading Bayern Munich to a Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal double.

In that context, Fabian – the only player to win the World Cup and Champions League this year – has emerged as a possible surprise contender.

A knee injury restricted Fabian to 34 appearances in all competitions for PSG last season, missing three months of action between January and April.

However, he did start as the Parisiens beat Arsenal on penalties in the Champions League final, then appeared in all eight of Spain's matches at the World Cup, starting four.

Fabian replaced Pedri in Spain's lineup for the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final in the United States, as La Roja defeated Belgium, France and Argentina to lift the trophy.

Asked by Marca if he saw himself as a realistic Ballon d'Or candidate, Fabian said: "Who wouldn't like to win a Ballon d'Or? 

"I'm happy with the season I've had, I've won the Champions League and the World Cup. If I'm there in the fight, it would be an honour."

Only Pedri (four) created more chances than Fabian (two) in the World Cup final, despite him only playing 62 minutes before being withdrawn, while his 91.7% pass accuracy was only bettered by one other Spain starter – Marc Cucurella (93.3%).

Reports suggest Fabian is set to extend his contract with PSG until 2029, but when the 30-year-old reaches the end of that deal, he will consider returning to boyhood club Real Betis, who he represented 60 times before leaving for Napoli in 2018.

"I'll never hide that I want to go back," Fabian said. "It's getting closer and closer; I'm a Betis fan and one day I hope to return to Betis."

Fabian was also asked about the prospect of his close friend Dani Ceballos returning to Betis, having left Real Madrid as a free agent.

He said: "I haven't been able to talk to him... during the World Cup I practically wasn't able to talk to anyone!

"But let's hope that his signing can be made. And if he returns to Betis, then I'm happy for everyone at Betis."