The Japanese nominees at the Ballon d’Or ceremony

The 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony marks a historic moment for Japanese football.

This year, four Japanese players have been nominated for awards, a record for the country – particularly impressive given that no Japanese players were nominated for any awards at last year’s ceremony.

This brings the total number of Japanese nominees throughout the ceremony’s history to 10.

Japanese players nominated for awards at the Ballon d’Or ceremonies:

  1. Hidetoshi Nakata: nominated for the Men’s Ballon d’Or in 1998, 1999 and 2001

  2. Junichi Inamoto: nominated for the Men’s Ballon d’Or in 2002

  3. Shunsuke Nakamura: nominated for the Men’s Ballon d’Or in 2007

  4. Saki Kumagai: nominated for the Women’s ‘Ballon d’Or’ in 2018

  5. Ritsu Dōan: nominated for the Men’s Young Talent of the Season award in 2018

  6. Hinata Miyazawa: nominated for the Women’s ‘Ballon d’Or’ in 2023

  7. Yui Hasegawa: nominated for the Women’s ‘Ballon d’Or’ in 2023, 2024 and 2026

  8. Manaka Matsukubo: nominated for the Women’s ‘Ballon d’Or’ in 2026

  9. Momoko Tanikawa: nominated for the Women’s ‘Ballon d’Or’ in 2026

  10. Ayaka Yamashita: nominated for the Goalkeeper of the Season award in 2026

But how did each of these players achieve this recognition? Let’s take a closer look at their careers and the moments that led to their nominations.

Although the first Ballon d’Ballon d’Or ceremony took place in 1956, players from outside Europe only became eligible for the award in 1995.

That year, Liberian striker George Weah made history as the first player to win the Ballon d’Or without playing for a European national team.

Hidetoshi Nakata: a sensation in Italy

Three years later, in 1998, it was Hidetoshi Nakata’s turn to make history: he became the first Japanese player to be nominated for the award.

Aged 21 at the time of the ceremony, the midfielder was also the first Asian player to receive a nomination for the ‘Ballon d’Or’.

The recognition came after Nakata played a key role in the Japanese national team that won the Dynasty Cup and secured qualification for the 1998 World Cup in France. Shortly after the tournament, he was signed by Perugia of Italy’s Serie A.

Nakata was nominated again in 1999, aged 22, following his first season in Italian football. Having recently joined from Bellmare Hiratsuka in Japan, the midfielder quickly made his mark at Perugia: he scored 10 goals and helped the team remain in the top flight of Italian football.

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Although he received no votes in either 1998 or 1999, Nakata finished 28th in the rankings on his third and final nomination, in 2001, aged 24.

This time, the recognition came after his second season at Roma, when he won the Italian Championship with the club.

One of Nakata’s most memorable moments for Roma came in May of that year, against Juventus at the Stadio Delle Alpi. With the team trailing by two goals, he came on at half-time to replace Francesco Totti, the fans’ idol, and turned the match around. First, he scored a stunning goal from around 30 metres, leaving Dutch goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar with no chance. He then provided an assist for Vincenzo Montella to score the equaliser. The 2–2 draw kept Roma with a comfortable six-point lead at the top of the league.

That same year, Nakata also helped Japan reach the final of the Confederations Cup and was named in the Tournament Team. He then moved to Parma in a deal that set a world record for a transfer involving an Asian player.

Junichi Inamoto: a standout at the World Cup

In 2002, another Japanese player was added to the list of nominees for the ‘Ballon d’Or’.

This time, the chosen one was midfielder Junichi Inamoto, who caught the eye with his performances for the Japanese national team at the World Cup. He helped the country reach the round of 16 for the first time in history.

That year, Inamoto also joined Fulham on loan. At the English club, he won over the fans and scored four goals in the two matches of the historic UEFA Intertoto Cup final, which they won against Bologna.

At the age of 22, the midfielder received no votes in the race for the ‘Ballon d’Or’ award.

Shunsuke Nakamura: master of free-kicks

Five years later, in 2007, it was Shunsuke Nakamura’s turn to receive a nomination. Aged 29, he finished 36th in the rankings.

In his second season at Celtic, the attacking midfielder had already established himself as one of the club’s key players, if not the key player.

In his very first Champions League appearance, against Manchester United at Old Trafford early in the season, he scored a free-kick that secured a draw for the Scottish side.

In November 2006, Nakamura found the net again with a free-kick against United, helping Celtic qualify for the knockout stages of the competition for the first time.

And the spectacular goals didn’t stop there. In December, he scored a stunning chip against Dundee United, voted Goal of the Season in the Scottish Premiership.

In April 2007, Celtic won the Scottish Premiership for the second year running, with a dramatic victory over Kilmarnock. Nakamura scored the decisive goal from a free-kick in stoppage time.

That year, the club also lifted the Scottish Cup.

Nakamura was also named in the Team of the Tournament for both the Scottish Premiership and the 2007 Asian Cup, which Japan hosted.

Although Nakamura was the last Japanese player to be nominated for the Ballon d’Or’s top men’s award, other players from Japan received nominations in different categories at the ceremony in subsequent years.

Saki Kumagai: champion in Europe

Just over a decade later, in 2018, Saki Kumagai became the first Japanese woman to be nominated for the women’s Ballon d’Or. Aged 27 at the time, she finished 12th in the rankings.

The nomination came after a successful season with Olympique Lyonnais, during which she won the Première Ligue and the Women’s Champions League. In addition, Kumagai lifted the AFC Women’s Asian Cup trophy with the Japanese national team.

Ritsu Dōan: a Japanese prospect in the Netherlands

That same year, right winger Ritsu Dōan was nominated for the Men’s Young Talent of the Season award, which was known at the time as the Kopa Trophy. The nomination came after his first season in European football, on loan from Gamba Osaka to Groningen in the Eredivisie, the Dutch top flight. After scoring 10 goals that season, the club decided to sign him on a permanent basis in July 2018.

It was also in that year that Dōan made his debut for Japan’s senior national team.

At the age of 20, he finished 9th in the rankings.

Hinata Miyazawa: top scorer of the World Cup

In 2023, two more Japanese players were nominated for the Ballon d’Or awards.

The first was Hinata Miyazawa. The midfielder, then aged 23, gained prominence mainly for her performances for the Japanese national team. She scored five goals at the Women’s World Cup, won the tournament’s Golden Boot and helped Japan reach the quarter-finals. Miyazawa finished 12th in the rankings.

Yui Hasegawa: a mainstay at City

The second was Yui Hasegawa. After transferring from West Ham United to Manchester City the previous year, she quickly secured a place in the starting line-up in her first season at the club. Hasegawa also helped the team put together a run of 16 matches without defeat across all competitions. City finished the league in fourth place and reached the semi-finals of the Women’s League Cup.

That same year, Hasegawa also played a key role in Japan’s campaign at the Women’s World Cup, helping the national team to top their group and progress to the quarter-finals.

At the age of 26, she finished 27th in the rankings, in her first of three nominations for the award.

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In 2024, aged 27, Hasegawa was again nominated for the same award and finished in 26th place. The nomination came after a season in which she represented Japan at the Paris Olympic Games and missed just one match for Manchester City.

The club finished the season as runners-up and set a record of 13 consecutive league wins.

In 2026, aged 29, Hasegawa was once again nominated for the award, following what was perhaps her most successful season to date with Manchester City. She won the Women’s Super League and the Women’s FA Cup with the club.

Over the course of last season, Hasegawa also reached the milestone of 100 appearances for both City and the Japanese national team. With Japan, she won the Women’s Asian Cup, winning every match in the tournament.

Manaka Matsukubo: record-breaker in the United States

As well as Hasegawa, two other Japanese players have been nominated for the 2026 Women’sBallon d’Or, both for the first time.

One of them is 22-year-old Manaka Matsukubo, who stood out for North Carolina Courage last season.

In October 2025, for example, she became the youngest player in the history of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) to score a hat-trick, in a 4–1 victory over Bay FC.

After scoring 11 goals for the club that season, Matsukubo also found the net for the first time for the Japanese national team in March 2026, during the country’s successful campaign at the Women’s Asian Cup. In July, she moved to Chelsea.

Momoko Tanikawa: a star in Germany

The other is 21-year-old midfielder Momoko Tanikawa, who won three titles with Bayern Munich in 2026: the Bundesliga, the DFB-Pokal and the DFB-Supercup. She also lifted the Women’s Asian Cup trophy with Japan.

Ayaka Yamashita: standout in goal

Finally, 31-year-old Ayaka Yamashita was nominated for the Goalkeeper of the Season award in 2026. Last season, she won the AFC Women’s Asian Cup with Japan, being named the tournament’s best goalkeeper, and helped Manchester City win the Women’s Super League and the FA Women’s Cup.

Japan leads the way among Asian nations

In total, 21 Asian players representing AFC national teams have been nominated for awards at the Ballon d’Or ceremony. Of these, 10 are Japanese, accounting for 48 per cent of the total. With this figure, Japan leads the way among Asian nations with the most nominees in the history of the awards.

Furthermore, it is the only Asian country with players nominated for Ballon d’Or awards in 2026.

AFC countries by number of players nominated for awards at the Ballon d’Or ceremonies (since 1995):

  1. Japan – 10 players nominated

  2. Australia / South Korea – 5 nominated players each

  3. Iraq – 1 nominated player

With so many Japanese names amongst the nominees, the question remains: will any of them take home an award at the 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony?

And will these nominations help pave the way for a new generation of Asian stars in world football?

The answer will be revealed soon, on 26 October, in London.