Ed Sheeran's name appears in the top 10 of the Billboard Global 200 dated 8 August 2026 — but not as a performer. He holds cowriter credits on two songs in the chart's upper tier, a placement that puts his pen, not his voice, in front of a worldwide audience.

The higher of the two is "Dai Dai (FIFA World Cup Official Song 2026)," a collaboration between Shakira and Burna Boy that spent its fourth consecutive week at No. 1. Sheeran is one of five credited writers on the track, alongside Shakira, Jon Bellion, Ahmed Saghir, and Alexander "A.C." Castillo Vasquez (Billboard).

The song held the top spot despite a 2% drop in streams to 56.8 million in the week ending 30 July — its first week-to-week decline since its May release. Even with that dip, no other track displaced it.

The second Sheeran-cowritten entry is "Animal" by KATSEYE, which debuted at No. 10 on the same chart. The track opened with 29.8 million global streams in its first week. It marks KATSEYE's first appearance in the Global 200's top 10, clearing their previous peak: "Gabriella," which reached No. 16. "Animal" was cowritten by Omar Fedi, Johnny McDaid, Blake Slatkin, and Sheeran (Billboard).

The Billboard Global 200, which launched in September 2020, tracks the most-streamed songs across the world each week, drawing on data from streaming services in over 200 territories. A top-10 placement on it means a song is among the ten most-played recordings on the planet for that chart period.

Sheeran's history with the chart stretches back to its early days. His first Global 200 No. 1 as a writer came with BTS's "Permission to Dance," which led the chart dated 24 July 2021. His own single "Bad Habits" also opened at No. 1 on the Global 200 (Billboard).

His writing résumé outside these two tracks runs wide. Billboard lists past collaborators including Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, Camila Cabello, Eminem, Elton John, Travis Scott, The Weeknd, and Luke Combs (Billboard).

What stands out this week is the contrast. "Dai Dai" is a stadium-scale FIFA World Cup anthem by two established global stars, now in its second month at the summit. "Animal" is a debut top-10 entry for a group still early in its chart life. Sheeran sits behind both — a writer whose work is reaching hundreds of millions of listeners whether or not he steps near a microphone.