Police called over suspicious Ballon d’Or bets after Harry Kane triumph as investigation launched

An investigation is underway after a series of dubious bets were placed on the exact top-five order of the Men’s Ballon d’Or. The glitzy event, recognising the best players and teams from the previous season, took place last Monday night at the London Palladium Theatre with the biggest stars in attendance. But a night that saw England captain Harry Kane crowned the world’s best player has now been shrouded in controversy, according to The Guardian. A succession of bets that predicted the order of the top five players and that generated £149,000 in winnings is being investigated by event organisers France Football. The police have also been contacted regarding the matter. Over $264,000 was allegedly gambled on the outcome of the Ballon d’Or by 12 Polymarket accounts – an American cryptocurrency-based prediction market. The wagers were placed prior to Monday’s event with the preciseness of the best raising questions over whether there was a leak of the results prior to the award being presented to Kane . The Bayern Munich striker held off Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal respectively to become the first Englishman to scoop the award since Michael Owen in 2001. Barcelona midfielder Rodri placed fourth while eight-time winner of the award Lionel Messi came in at fifth. That same order was predicted by the accounts in question as part of the ongoing investigation headed by French media outlet Upside. Peculiar betting patterns detected The outlet’s co-founder Raphaël Pautard says it had discovered 12 Polymarket accounts created between October 1 and October 20. The accounts in question presented similar patterns of activity with investigators suspecting that there could be connections to the same group or individual. A total of seven of the 12 accounts had not participated in any other form of betting. Meanwhile six placed their first bets 15 minutes after being created. Pautard claims that his team were able to trace one wager back to a French platform. The platform says it has identified the person behind one of the accounts involved in funding the suspicious bets. However, the individual in question has not yet been disclosed. Following their findings, Upside passed their findings to France Football who were informed on Friday afternoon that an investigation has been opened. The placed bets centred on specific scenarios such as Kane winning the award and Mbappe placing second and Messi coming fifth rather than larger outcomes. Prior to the ceremony, France Football stated that only a small number of people knew that Kane had won the award. Therefore, a possible leak of the information for betting purposes has created huge concern for event organisers. Win £10,000 Tax-Free Cash End 2026 with a nice little boost How would £10,000 change your week? We’ve got a guaranteed winner next Friday, and it could be you walking away with £10,000 tax-free cash ! Use code EARLY at talksportwin.com to grab 50 per cent off all your entries before midnight Sunday Enter now for your chance to win. The competition closes on Friday, November 6 at 3pm.