Kane says he would choose Champions League over Ballon d’Or

Harry Kane says he would choose a Champions League winner’s medal over the Ballon d’Or, despite winning football’s top individual award last week. The Bayern Munich striker said lifting Europe’s leading club trophy with his team-mates would be an “incredible feeling”.

Asked before Bayern’s Champions League match against Atletico Madrid whether he would swap the honours, Kane said: “I would choose the Champions League, but I have the opportunity to do both – let’s see what happens.”

Kane, 33, became the first Englishman since Michael Owen in 2001 to win the Ballon d’Or. He described the award as one of the best feelings of his life and career, but said team trophies were why players competed.

Bayern and their supporters paid tribute to him before Saturday’s match against Borussia Dortmund. The club have not had a Ballon d’Or winner since Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in 1981.

Kane also said he was close to agreeing a new contract with Bayern after “good conversations” in recent days. He described negotiations as “more days than weeks”, while noting that some details still needed to be settled.