Yan Diomande and Pau Cubarsi named among top five favourites for Golden Boy 2026
Tuttosport published the 100-player Golden Boy Award 2026 shortlist on Sunday, August 16, naming Real Madrid’s Yan Diomande and Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi among the top five favourites for the prize.
The Golden Boy Award, presented by Italian outlet Tuttosport, recognises the best under-21 footballer in the calendar year; to be eligible a player must be under 21 when the shortlist is announced and must be playing in a European top-flight league, with relegation during the calendar year resulting in disqualification. Players on the list are graded on a scale of 1 to 100 by the "Golden Boy Index," a statistical measure developed jointly by Football Benchmark and Tuttosport. The first award was given to Rafael van der Vaart in 2003 and past winners include Lionel Messi; the current holder is Paris Saint-Germain’s Desire Doué.
Tuttosport and partner Transfermarkt released an updated Golden Boy Top 100 that tracks U21 performances in European leagues, and the shortlist features multiple representatives from Barcelona and Real Madrid. Victor Froholdt was the only player from outside Europe’s top five leagues to appear in the top 10 of the updated ranking.
Victor Froholdt enjoyed a strong debut season with Porto after joining from Copenhagen, making 52 appearances across all competitions, scoring eight goals and registering seven assists; he also scored in the Portuguese Super Cup this season.
Ayyoub Bouaddi made 42 appearances across all competitions for LOSC Lille last season and was Morocco’s starting midfielder at the FIFA World Cup 2026, where he was one of the players who helped the Atlas Lions reach the quarter-finals; a reported move to Manchester City has been linked to him.
Warren Zaire-Emery, a graduate of the Paris Saint‑Germain academy in 2022, made 54 appearances across all competitions last season, scoring three goals and registering five assists as PSG claimed both Ligue 1 and the UEFA Champions League; he also played the full 90 minutes of the UEFA Super Cup, which PSG won.
Ivory Coast winger Yan Diomande scored 13 goals and provided 10 assists in 36 appearances across all competitions for RB Leipzig, and his performances for the Elephants at the FIFA World Cup 2026 prompted Real Madrid to sign him for an initial fee of €125 million, a move the report said makes him a key part of Jose Mourinho’s plans with Los Blancos. Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi started all eight matches for Spain as they won the FIFA World Cup 2026 and made 48 appearances across all competitions for Barcelona, with his composed defending cited as a factor in Barcelona’s LaLiga title.
The Golden Boy winner will be announced at a ceremony in Turin in mid-December.
