Khadija Shaw left out of FIFPRO Women's World XI shortlist
Manchester City's Khadija Shaw, who finished third in the Ballon d'Or, is not on the 26-player shortlist for the FIFPRO Women's World XI. The Ballon d'Or is the sport's best-known individual award, and Shaw was one of several well-known names to miss out on this one, according to the BBC.
The FIFPRO Women's World XI is an annual team picked by the players themselves. FIFPRO is the global union for professional footballers, made up of 68 national player unions. The BBC describes the shortlist as the only award decided solely by fellow footballers.
Players voted online, and 6,511 women's footballers from 64 countries took part. To be eligible, a player had to appear at least 20 times in the voting period, which ran from 4 August 2025 to 16 August 2026.
The final team has one goalkeeper, three defenders, three midfielders and three forwards. Those are the players with the most votes in each position. One more outfield player, the next highest vote-getter, completes the side. If a player was named in more than one position, her votes are combined.
Five of the top 10 Ballon d'Or finishers did not make the shortlist. Shaw is one of them. Melchie Dumornay and Temwa Chawinga are also missing, along with Barcelona's Caroline Graham Hansen, Denmark captain Pernille Harder, and England's Lauren Hemp and Lauren James.
Three England players were surprise inclusions. Ella Toone, Chloe Kelly and Aggie Beever-Jones all made the list, even though each had been left out of England's most recent squad at first. Lyon striker Ada Hegerberg is also on the shortlist.
The goalkeeper nominees are Ann-Katrin Berger, Catalina Coll and Hannah Hampton. Among the defenders are Ona Batlle, Lucy Bronze, Emily Fox and Mapi León, according to Real Madrid, which also confirmed that its player Athenea was shortlisted. Barbra Banda of Orlando Pride and Zambia is on the list too.
The American league is also thinly represented. Yahoo Sports reported that only two players from the NWSL, the National Women's Soccer League in the United States, made the 26-name list.
Shortlists always leave people out, and this one has left some big names on the outside looking in. Fans who follow a particular club or country will have their own views on the omissions and inclusions.
The winners will be unveiled on Monday, 9 November, at 13:00 GMT. Until then, the 26 names stand, and the votes that put them there are settled.
