Spain national-team manager Luis de la Fuente has been named the 2026 Men’s Coach of the Year at the Ballon d’Or awards after guiding Spain to FIFA World Cup glory.
UEFA officially confirmed De la Fuente as the winner at the 70th Ballon d’Or ceremony held at the London Palladium on October 26.
De la Fuente Beats Four Other Nominees
The five nominees for the Men’s Coach of the Year award were:
Mikel Arteta
Luis de la Fuente
Unai Emery
Vincent Kompany
Luis Enrique
De la Fuente ultimately received the award following Spain’s remarkable 2026 campaign.
Spain Won the 2026 World Cup
The biggest achievement came at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where Spain defeated Argentina 1-0 after extra time in the final at New York New Jersey Stadium.
Ferran Torres scored the decisive goal in the 106th minute, securing Spain’s second World Cup title after their first triumph in 2010.
Spain also beat France 2-0 in the semi-final.
Major Success Under De la Fuente
De la Fuente took charge of Spain’s senior national team in December 2022.
His major honours now include:
UEFA Nations League 2023
UEFA Euro 2024
and
FIFA World Cup 2026.
The World Cup victory also made him the oldest coach to win the tournament, according to FIFA.
Other Ballon d’Or Winners
Harry Kane won the 2026 Men’s Ballon d’Or, while Alexia Putellas took the women’s award.
Other winners included Lamine Yamal as Men’s Young Talent of the Year and Unai Simón as Men’s Goalkeeper of the Year.
Barcelona coach Pere Romeu won the Women’s Coach of the Year award.
