Real Madrid were keen to highlight their Clasico victory against Barcelona (2-1) last Sunday, in the tenth round of the Spanish league, during the 2026 Ballon d'Or awards ceremony.
As the ceremony unfolded in London on Monday night, Real Madrid's television channel cut away from its usual programming for a special episode of "Real Madrid Conecta", dedicated to the latest awards and the unveiling of the winner, according to "Foot Mercato".
The commentators seized the chance to question the information doing the rounds before the event, picking apart the inaccurate predictions: "Complete lists were leaked, which omitted the names of the winners, and the names of winners who were not actually the winners were also leaked. It seems that some are engaging in outright falsification."
They added sarcastically: "Isn't it strange that the ceremony is being held in London for the first time?"
Tensions then escalated when the time came to choose the successor to French star Ousmane Dembele, the Paris Saint-Germain forward who won the 2025 Ballon d'Or.
Real Madrid had pinned their hopes on Kylian Mbappe, who finished second in the ranking. In the end, Harry Kane was crowned.
Real Madrid's television channel congratulated the Englishman before signing off with a pointed nod to the victory in Catalonia: "Real Madrid won in Barcelona, and Harry Kane is the Ballon d'Or winner. See you tomorrow, goodbye."
It dragged the Clasico back into the spotlight and took a veiled swipe at Barcelona, closing out an evening in which the Real Madrid star had failed to land the award.