Kylian Mbappe has revealed the four players he would place on football’s Mount Rushmore, with the Real Madrid forward selecting a quartet containing 16 Ballon d’Or awards between them.
The France captain made his choices during an interview with Complex at the national team’s Clairefontaine training base, with his own standing among football’s elite under discussion ahead of the 2026 Ballon d’Or ceremony.
Messi and Ronaldo lead Mbappe’s all-time quartet
Mbappe did not hesitate when asked to name his first two selections, with Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo making the cut without debate.
“My football Mount Rushmore? In no particular order? Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, without hesitation. And I can’t leave out the Brazilian Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane,” Mbappe said.
The four players have enjoyed extraordinary careers, with Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo dominating the Ballon d’Or for much of the modern era. Messi has won the award eight times, while Ronaldo has claimed it five times.
Ronaldo Nazario collected two Ballon d’Ors during his career, while Zidane won the prestigious individual award in 1998.
The quartet also boasts significant Champions League pedigree. Messi and Ronaldo won the competition multiple times, while Zidane lifted the trophy as a player with Real Madrid.
Mbappe still gunning for major prize
Mbappe’s inclusion among the current generation of elite players is supported by his remarkable World Cup record.
The France star won the World Cup in 2018 and claimed the Golden Boot at Qatar 2022 before repeating the feat at the 2026 tournament, where he scored 10 goals.
His latest Golden Boot took his World Cup tally to 22 goals, moving him beyond Miroslav Klose’s previous record of 16. Mbappe also became the first player to win the tournament’s Golden Boot twice.
At club level, however, one major trophy continues to elude him. Mbappe has never won the Champions League. He reached the final with Paris Saint-Germain in 2020, only for Bayern Munich to win 1-0, before PSG lifted the trophy the season after his departure for Madrid.
Real Madrid have also gone two seasons without winning La Liga or the Champions League since his arrival, although Mbappe has continued to deliver individually, scoring 42 goals in 44 games during the 2025/26 campaign and finished as the leading scorer in both La Liga and the Champions League.
Mbappe is among the 30 nominees for the 2026 Ballon d’Or, which will be awarded in London on October 26.