By Adegboyega Adeleye
The 25 finalists for the 2026 Golden Boy Award have been announced, with Barcelona defender Pau Cubarsi, Real Madrid’s Yan Diomande, Manchester City’s Ayyoub Bouaddi, Chelsea forward Estêvão Willian, and Bayern Munich youngster Lennart Karl among the leading names on the list.
Italian newspaper Tuttosport, organisers of the award, released the final shortlist on Monday, with 25 of Europe’s best young players competing for the prestigious prize.
The Golden Boy Award recognises the best Under-21 player competing in European football, with the winner selected from the final list by an international jury of 50 journalists.
Cubarsi enters the final race after playing a key role in Spain’s World Cup triumph, where he started all eight matches and was named the tournament’s Young Player of the Year.
The 19-year-old is widely regarded as one of the leading contenders after an outstanding year for Barcelona and Spain, while Diomande, Bouaddi, Estêvão, and Karl have also emerged among the prominent names in the final shortlist.
The Premier League has the largest representation with eight finalists, followed by La Liga with six, the Bundesliga with five and Serie A with three. Spain lead the national representation with four players, while Germany, Brazil and France have three each.
Barcelona are the best-represented club with three finalists: Cubarsi, Marc Bernal and Xavi Espart.
Full list of Golden Boy 2026 finalists
Pau Cubarsi — Barcelona
Ayyoub Bouaddi — Manchester City
Warren Zaire-Emery — Paris Saint-Germain
Yan Diomande — Real Madrid
Luka Vuskovic — Brighton
Victor Froholdt — Porto
Myles Lewis-Skelly — Arsenal
Rayan — Bournemouth
Jorrel Hato — Chelsea
Lennart Karl — Bayern Munich
Estevao — Chelsea
Endrick — Real Madrid
Eli Junior Kroupi — Bournemouth
Gianluca Prestianni — Benfica
Konstantinos Karetsas — Borussia Dortmund
Said El Mala — Cologne
Jon Martin — Real Sociedad
Marc Bernal — Barcelona
Kerim Alajbegovic — Juventus
Finn Jeltsch — Stuttgart
Charalampos Kostoulas — Brighton
Joane Gadou — Borussia Dortmund
Franco Mastantuono — Fiorentina
Rodrigo Mora — Roma
Xavi Espart — Barcelona
The 25 finalists represent 14 countries, with Spain providing four players, the highest national representation. Germany, Brazil and France have three each, while Greece and Argentina have two apiece. Bayern Munich’s Karl, born on February 22, 2008, is the youngest player on the list.
The combined market value of the finalists is €1.303 billion, according to Tuttosport, citing Transfermarkt.
The winner will be selected by an international jury of 50 journalists from across Europe, with the final award expected to be presented in Turin later this year.
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