A footballer whose fame peaks around the World Cup, the tournament that turns players into global celebrities for a summer. Jude Bellingham was voted Sexiest World Cup Star in the 2026 Readers’ Choice Poll, ahead of Erling Haaland, Ferran Torres and Christian Pulisic. The category recognises that in a World Cup era, the sport’s biggest names compete for attention far beyond the stadiums.
(Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0))
Mentioned in: Why 250,000 Votes Matter: The Readers’ Choice Poll Is Now the Real Sexiest Contest