Bayern's Hoeness: Kane must win Ballon d'Or

Bayern Munich honorary president Uli Hoeness believes Harry Kane should be the clear choice for this year's Ballon d'Or.

"He would absolutely deserve it. And I hope he gets it," Hoeness told the Abendzeitung newspaper.

The ceremony takes place on October 26 in London, with Kane up against the likes of Lamine Yamal , Rodri , Lionel Messi , Ousmane Dembélé and Kylian Mbappé .

Hoeness dismissed the idea of Messi winning the award again as "nonsense," arguing that Kane had enjoyed "an outstanding season across all competitions."

"If he doesn't deserve it this year, then when?" he said.

Hoeness also pointed to Mbappé, who finished as top scorer in both the Champions League and the World Cup but failed to win a title with Real Madrid .

"They didn't even become Spanish champions," the 74-year-old said. "They didn't win a single title - and we won two."

Kane, 33, won the Bundesliga and German Cup with Bayern, reached the Champions League semi-finals and captained England to third place at the World Cup.

He also won the European Golden Shoe as the continent's leading goalscorer and finished as the Bundesliga's top scorer for a third successive season with 36 goals.

Kane scored 73 competitive goals for club and country over the season.

Only Messi has scored more, with 82 goals for Barcelona and Argentina in the 2011-12 season.

There are no other candidates this year who clearly stand out through success in both the Champions League and the World Cup.

The last Bayern player to win the Ballon d'Or was Karl-Heinz Rummenigge 45 years ago in 1981, after also winning the award in 1980.

Franz Beckenbauer won it as a Bayern player in 1972 and 1976, while Gerd Müller took the award in 1970.