James Olley Oct 26, 2026, 07:44 PM ET

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James Olley is a senior soccer writer for ESPN.com. Read his archive here and follow him on Twitter: @JamesOlley .

LONDON -- It is nine years since Harry Kane lingered at the back of the London Palladium at the end of a soccer awards show.

The Best FIFA Football Awards in 2017 had just concluded with Cristiano Ronaldo handed the men's top prize in addition to leading a team of the year including Lionel Messi , Neymar , Sergio Ramos and Gianluigi Buffon.

As the audience filed out and a few mere mortals loitered in the hope of a selfie, Kane stood near the exit, casting a longing stare at the winners on stage. He has dreamed all his life of being in their place, considered in the same breath as the game's greats.

On Monday, at the same storied West End venue, about nine miles from his birthplace in Leytonstone, he finally is. Sat next to Lamine Yamal with last year's winner Rodri one place further away, Kane kept company with the elite.…