16 October 2025
Barcelona and Spain star Lamine Yamal was not included in the shortlist for the 2025 Golden Boy award, despite his exceptional performances last season with his club and country. The Golden Boy award, presented annually by the Italian newspaper Tuttosport, is presented to the best young European footballer under the age of 21.
Lamine, 18, finished second in the 2025 Ballon d'Or, awarded by France Football magazine, the highest individual honor in world football.
Given his Ballon d'Or ranking and his exceptional performance, it seemed logical that Lamine Jamal would be a top candidate, even an exceptional candidate, for this year's Golden Boy award, as the list of 25 nominees included.
However, the real reason for Lamine Lamal's absence is due to a fundamental condition of the award's regulations: no player is allowed to win the Golden Boy award more than once.
Lamine Yamal had previously won this award in 2024, meaning he is ineligible to compete for it this year, regardless of his performance or fame. Therefore, his absence is not a reflection of his decline in performance, but rather a result of the award's rules, which aim to provide opportunities for new young talent each year.
The 2025 nominees for the award include Pau Cubarsi (Barcelona), Desiree Douai, Warren Zaire-Emery and Seny Maiolo (Paris Saint-Germain), Den Huijsen (Real Madrid), Kenan Yildiz (Juventus), Miles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal), Arda Guler and Franco Mastrantuono (Real Madrid), Jorel Hato and Estevao (Chelsea), Giovanni Quenda (Sporting Lisbon), Lenny Yoro (Manchester United), Nico O'Reilly (Manchester City), Elias Ben Seghir (Bayer Leverkusen), Victor Froholt (Porto), Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray (Tottenham), Mamadou Sarr (Strasbourg), Job Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Francesco Pio Esposito (Inter Milan), Rodrigo Moura (Porto), Giovanni Leone (Liverpool) and Aleksandar Stankovic (Klopp). The Golden Boy award has previously been won by prominent players such as Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero, Kylian Mbappé, Erling Haaland, and Jude Bellingham.
