Harry Kane ends 25-year wait for England with men's Ballon d'Or, first Englishman since Michael Owen in 2001

On Monday night the arches at Wembley were lit gold, a signal to London that Harry Kane had been named the best player in the world. The 33-year-old Bayern Munich striker took the men's Ballon d'Or at a ceremony in the city, becoming the first English winner since Michael Owen in 2001.

Kane is the fifth Englishman to hold the award. Stanley Matthews won in 1956, Bobby Charlton in 1966, and Kevin Keegan in both 1978 and 1979. Two other winners came from the wider United Kingdom: Scotland's Denis Law in 1964 and Northern Ireland's George Best in 1968. Real Madrid and France forward Kylian Mbappe finished second, with Barcelona and Spain attacker Lamine Yamal third. Kane is also the first Bayern player to win since Karl-Heinz Rummenigge in 1981.

Speaking to Dazn, Kane said few people would have expected it, himself included. He described early-career ups and downs and said he was never the person people tipped to become a superstar like some of today's players. He had to bide his time and work hard, he said, and often the battle was with his own mind, requiring self-belief and determination. That, he said, kept him grounded even after reaching the top level. England manager Thomas Tuchel said he was delighted and called it a huge honour. Prince William called the former Tottenham player a brilliant captain and a remarkable player.

The numbers explain the verdict. Last season Kane scored 61 goals in 51 club matches, the most any Bayern player has managed in a single campaign, a club that has had Gerd Muller, Rummenigge and Robert Lewandowski. Add England and the total reaches 73 goals plus eight assists in 65 matches. Only one player at a club in Europe's top five leagues has ever scored more in a season. His 61 club goals were 19 more than anyone else in those leagues managed, and the most since Cristiano Ronaldo also hit 61 for Real Madrid 11 years ago.

The breakdown: 36 Bundesliga goals, 17 clear of the next best; 14 in the Champions League; 10 in the German Cup, including a hat-trick in the 3-0 final win over Stuttgart; one in the German Super Cup; and 12 for England, six of them at the World Cup. Lionel Messi's 82 for Barcelona and Argentina in 2011-12 remains the only higher total from Europe's top leagues. Muller's 72 in 1972-73 is next.

He won without either of football's biggest prizes, having lost in the semi-finals of both the World Cup and the Champions League. He did win the German league and cup double, which more than doubled his career trophy count; his previous best Ballon d'Or finish was 10th. Since 2006, only five times in 20 years has the award gone to a player without a World Cup, Champions League, European Championship or Copa America win that year; Kane joins Messi, three times, and Ronaldo. Yamal, who won the World Cup with Spain, had been among the favourites. Alan Shearer had said Kane should win, and Danny Murphy called him the best centre forward in the world over the past 12 months.

Next year's race may already be forming. Kane has 10 goals in 12 Bayern games this season, plus six in four Nations League games for England: 16 in 16. Bayern are unbeaten in the Bundesliga and Champions League. A Treble at that scoring rate would make him hard to overlook in a year with no World Cup, European Championship or Copa America. The last player other than Messi or Ronaldo to win back to back was Marco van Basten in 1988 and 1989.

Yamal, second twice in two years, has 10 goals and 10 assists in 13 games for Barcelona, who are favourites for the Champions League. At 20 he would be the youngest winner, ahead of Brazilian Ronaldo, 21 in 1997. Mbappe has 14 goals in 13 appearances, and Arsenal and Paris St-Germain are also contenders in Europe.