Football pundit Thierry Henry experienced an uncomfortable moment on stage when he attempted to correct the pronunciation of his co-host Kate Scott during the Ballon d'Or ceremony held at London's Palladium Theatre last night.

Working together previously on Champions League broadcasts for CBS Sports, the pair built a strong working relationship, but hit an awkward snag while introducing the Socrates Award, which recognizes players for humanitarian achievements.

Scott, 45, stated, "And we'll also hand out the Socrates award, which is..."

Henry then interrupted, asking, "What do you mean, Socrates? We don't have any philosophers here... it's Socrates".

While the 49-year-old Frenchman tried using a Brazilian accent, Scott preferred the standard English pronunciation.

Recovering professionally from the tense exchange, Scott answered, "Excuse my pronunciation everybody. Trust Thierry to get it right."

The evening continued, and the Socrates Award went to Bukayo Saka. Scott arrived on the red carpet alongside her husband, boxer Malik.

Later in the program, the host had to inform the audience about an upcoming commercial break, prompting audible groans of frustration from the crowd.

English captain Harry Kane ultimately secured the 2026 men's Ballon d'Or trophy.

At age 33, Kane triumphed over tough contenders like Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal to claim the honor.

Following his victory, the forward remarked, "I'm almost speechless, luckily I have this list. First of all thank you to French football, the Ballon d'Or this amazing event being in London as well looked a good omen for me so thank you very much."

He continued, "Thank you to everyone who voted for me. I can imagine it was really tough this year, [with] some of the incredible players I was up against - some of my team-mates [and] world class players in the room tonight."

"Congratulations to all the winners, all the nominees, an impressive showing of what hard work and determination can achieve, so well done. My Bayern Munich team-mates - I've got a few here tonight, without you it wouldn't have been possible," Kane added.

"The way you guys have pushed me, the way we compete, against Upa [Dayot Upamecano] in training every week, it just makes me want to improve," he said.

"Vincent [Kompany], I know he's at home, still in the hospital so wishing him very well. Hope this has given you a bit of energy and all the staff, the way we train, the way you push us you're a credit to yourself," Kane stated.

"Since I've been with you I've improved as a player and improved as a person, as a leader, through your leadership. To the Bayern Munich chairman, presidents, I know some of you couldn't be here tonight but it's an honour to play for Bayern Munich. To represent you is a real privilege so I'm glad to be bringing this trophy back to Bayern Munich for sure," he mentioned.

"To all of my England team-mates, Bukayo [Saka]'s here representing England and, again just saying, we had a special year. It wasn't a perfect year but we had a lot of good moments, built a great bond together, a lot of togetherness in the way we trained and the way we played," Kane explained.

"The togetherness in the hotel and the World Cup. Yeah it was truly an honour to captain you, it makes me extremely proud. This one is for all of us. To Thomas Tuchel and the staff, again - the leadership, the way you drive us, the way you push standards is something to be admired. To represent the England badge the way you do," he concluded.