Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal has clinched the Golden Boy Award as the Best Young Player for 2024 after seeing off competition from 24 other nominees to claim the highly coveted trophy.
The Golden Boy Award is an annual honour presented by the Italian sports newspaper Tuttosport. A panel of selected journalists from some of Europe’s top newspapers served as jurors to determine the eventual winner.
Yamal emerged victorious from a competitive field of 24 nominees, including Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho, Paris Saint-Germain’s Warren Zaïre-Emery, and Real Madrid’s Endrick.
Other finalists included standout young talents such as Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United), Rico Lewis (Manchester City), and Mathys Tel (Bayern Munich).
The 17-year-old’s meteoric rise since breaking into Barcelona’s first team during the 2023/24 season has caused waves in the footballing world, with his dazzling performances propelling him above his peers.
Since making his debut among the elite, the Kopa Trophy winner has never looked back as he continues to shatter records along the way.
During the 2023/24 season, he became the youngest player to score in La Liga history. In July this year, he made history by becoming the youngest player to both score and win the European Championship.
Speaking after his emergence as Barcelona’s fourth Golden Boy winner, Yamal said: “For me, it’s a pride to win the Golden Boy. I’m very happy, and it’s a dream.”
“I don’t want to forget my teammates, my coaches, the staff of both Barça and the Spanish national team. It’s been an incredible year, and it’s also ending in an incredible way”.
Lionel Messi (2005), Pedri González (2021), and Gavi (2022) are the three previous Barcelona players to have won the award.
