Kane makes knighthood admission as he sets out demand for name change

Harry Kane would be honoured to receive a knighthood but admits he would demand his peers avoid calling him 'Sir'. The notion of being knighted by the Royal Family has been touted following his historic Ballon d'Or win on Monday night.

The Bayern Munich striker was crowned the winner and became the first Englishman to hold the award since Michael Owen in 2001. His incredible 73-goal season, coupled with his standout World Cup campaign and Bundesliga title, helped tip the scales in his favour.

Talk of a potential knighthood has emerged this week, and Kane has shared his views on the matter. He told BILD: "I certainly wouldn't say no - I really appreciate it. If it came to that, it would be incredible and something I'd be incredibly proud of. But I don't want to get too carried away with it right now."

When questioned about how 'Sir Harry Kane' sounded, the 33-year-old replied: "It sounds good, but it would feel kind of strange if everyone called me Sir - so for now, I'll just stick with Harry."

Kane edged out Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal for the prize, with one of his rivals offering congratulations on social media. After collecting his own Kopa trophy, Yamal wrote: "Congratulations to the winners. My focus now returns to what's important, to make FC Barcelona win again."

Mbappe has remained quiet, choosing instead to share a photograph of himself in formal attire at the ceremony on Instagram. Kane revealed his eagerness to return home to his family and show his four children the Ballon d'Or.

He said: "I'm really looking forward to seeing them again and showing them the trophy. I already know they'll try to play with it or pick it up - and it's quite heavy! I guess I'll have to keep an eye on that this time."

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Kane also expressed his gratitude to his Bayern team-mates for their heartfelt reception upon his return to the club, as they formed a guard of honour ahead of the DFB-Pokal fixture against Magdeburg. He said: "It's strange. I don't usually enjoy that sort of thing.

"When I went out to warm up and everyone was standing there applauding - I don't know, it's almost a little embarrassing. But of course, I realise it's a big deal."

The England captain intends to show his appreciation to both his club and international colleagues with gifts for their contributions to the accolade. Kane added: "Some of the guys have asked for watches or something similar - so I'll have to come up with something nice for them, both at Bayern and with the England national team. I'll take care of it; I'll definitely get everyone a nice present."

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