🚨 OFFICIAL: Golden Boy Reveals Final 25 as Cubarsí, Endrick, Estêvão and Europe’s Best Young Stars Make the Cut

The 25 finalists for the 2026 Golden Boy award have officially been revealed, with Barcelona defender Pau Cubarsí, Real Madrid duo Endrick and Yan Diomande, Chelsea's Estêvão and Manchester City's Ayyoub Bouaddi among the standout names.

The final list represents 14 countries and eight Premier League players, while Barcelona lead all clubs with three finalists. The winner will be selected by an international jury of 50 European journalists and announced in November.

Cubarsí Leads a Star-Studded Golden Boy Final

The race for the 2026 Golden Boy award has entered its final stage.

Tuttosport has officially announced the 25 finalists competing for the prestigious prize, which recognises the best Under-21 player competing for a European club.

Barcelona's Pau Cubarsí headlines the final group after a standout year, while some of Europe's biggest clubs are represented by their brightest young talents.

The finalists were selected from the October update of the European Golden Boy Top 100, with five additional players receiving Wild Cards.

Barcelona Lead the Way

Barcelona have more finalists than any other club, with three players making the final 25.

Cubarsí is joined by Marc Bernal and Xavi Espart, giving the Catalan club a strong presence in the final stage.

Cubarsí is regarded as one of the leading contenders after his performances for Barcelona and Spain, while Bernal and Espart have also established themselves among Europe's emerging young players.

Real Madrid have two finalists in Yan Diomande and Endrick.

Endrick's inclusion is particularly notable given the continued attention surrounding his development in Madrid, while Diomande also enters the race after making the move to the Spanish giants.

Premier League Clubs Make Their Mark

The Premier League is the most represented competition in the final 25, with eight players making the cut.

Manchester City's Ayyoub Bouaddi is joined by Arsenal's Myles Lewis-Skelly, while Chelsea have two representatives in Jorrel Hato and Estêvão.

Bournemouth also have two finalists — Rayan and Junior Kroupi — while Brighton are represented by Luka Vušković and Charalampos Kostoulas.

The strength of the Premier League contingent underlines the growing influence of young players across England's top flight.

Endrick, Estêvão and Brazil's Golden Boy Challenge

Brazil have three players among the finalists.

Endrick represents Real Madrid, while Estêvão has made the final list after establishing himself at Chelsea. Bournemouth forward Rayan completes Brazil's trio.

The presence of the three Brazilians adds another layer to an already competitive race.

Endrick and Estêvão have both attracted enormous attention since emerging as teenagers, while Rayan's inclusion gives Brazil another contender for the award.

The Complete 25-Man Final

The 2026 Golden Boy finalists are:

1.Pau Cubarsí — Barcelona 🇪🇸

2.Marc Bernal — Barcelona 🇪🇸

3.Ayyoub Bouaddi — Manchester City 🇲🇦

4.Warren Zaïre-Emery — Paris Saint-Germain 🇫🇷

5.Yan Diomande — Real Madrid 🇨🇮

6.Endrick — Real Madrid 🇧🇷

7.Luka Vušković — Brighton 🇭🇷

8.Victor Froholdt — Porto 🇩🇰

9.Myles Lewis-Skelly — Arsenal 🏴

10.Rayan — Bournemouth 🇧🇷

11.Junior Kroupi — Bournemouth 🇫🇷

12.Jorrel Hato — Chelsea 🇳🇱

13.Estêvão — Chelsea 🇧🇷

14.Gianluca Prestianni — Benfica 🇦🇷

15.Konstantinos Karetsas — Borussia Dortmund 🇬🇷

16.Saïd El Mala — Köln 🇩🇪

17.Jon Martín — Real Sociedad 🇪🇸

18.Kerim Alajbegović — Juventus 🇧🇦

19.Finn Jeltsch — Stuttgart 🇩🇪

20.Lennart Karl — Bayern Munich 🇩🇪

21.Charalampos Kostoulas — Brighton 🇬🇷

22.Joane Gadou — Borussia Dortmund 🇫🇷

23.Rodrigo Mora — Roma 🇵🇹

24.Franco Mastantuono — Fiorentina, on loan from Real Madrid 🇦🇷

25.Xavi Espart — Barcelona 🇪🇸

The final five — Kostoulas, Gadou, Mora, Mastantuono and Espart — entered the competition through Tuttosport's Wild Card selections.

Who Will Win Golden Boy 2026?

The final decision will be made by an international jury consisting of 50 European journalists.

The winner is scheduled to be announced in November, ahead of the Golden Boy ceremony in Turin in December.

Cubarsí enters the final stage as one of the strongest names in the conversation, but the competition contains enough elite young talent to make the final outcome difficult to predict.

With Barcelona, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Chelsea, Bayern Munich, PSG and several other major clubs represented, the 2026 Golden Boy race has all the ingredients for a fascinating finish.

Player Ratings — Golden Boy Finalists

Because this is an awards shortlist rather than a single match, individual match ratings would not be meaningful. Instead, the strongest way to assess the field is through their Golden Boy standing and current profile:

Pau Cubarsí — 9/10: One of the leading contenders and Barcelona's headline finalist.

Yan Diomande — 8.5/10: Major attacking prospect with a high-profile move to Real Madrid.

Ayyoub Bouaddi — 8.5/10: Highly rated midfielder now representing Manchester City.

Warren Zaïre-Emery — 8.5/10: Established at PSG and a repeat presence in the Golden Boy final.

Endrick — 8.5/10: One of the most recognisable young forwards in the competition.

Estêvão — 8.5/10: Chelsea's Brazilian attacking talent remains one of the names attracting major attention.

These are editorial assessments of their Golden Boy profiles, not match-performance ratings.

A New Golden Boy Awaits

The 2026 shortlist brings together some of the most exciting young players in European football.

With Lamine Yamal ineligible to win the award again despite ranking highly in the Golden Boy Top 100, the door is open for a new name to take the crown.

Now the waiting game begins.

Twenty-five players remain.

Only one will be crowned the 2026 Golden Boy.