They comprise the top 20 from the October update of the Top 100 compiled by Transfermarkt and the five ‘illimity Banca Ifis-Ifis Sport Wild Card’ awarded to players not included in the list
The list of the 25 finalists for the European Golden Boy – Absolute Best 2026 award was unveiled today at Villa Fürstenberg, the headquarters of Banca Ifis in Mestre: it comprises the top 20 from the October update of the European Golden Boy Top 100 – the ranking of the best Under-21 players at European clubs compiled by main partner Transfermarkt – and five ‘illimity Banca Ifis-Ifis Sport Wild Card’, awarded to five players ranked between 21st and 100th.
From now on, the European Golden Boy’s international jury – comprising 50 journalists from across Europe – will select the winner of the Absolute Best award from among the 25 finalists. The winner will be announced at a press conference scheduled for November, alongside the names of all the other award winners.
The list of 25 finalists includes players from 14 countries, with Spain leading the way (4 players), followed by Germany, Brazil and France (3 each), and then Greece and Argentina (2 each). With 8 nominees, the Premier League tops the ranking of the most represented leagues, ahead of La Liga (6), the Bundesliga (5) and Serie A (3). Barcelona is the club with the most representatives (3 players), whilst the youngest finalist is Lennart Karl (born 22/02/2008) of Bayern Monaco. The total market value of the 25 finalists stands at 1,303,000,000 euros, an increase of 56.65 per cent compared with January 2026 (832,300,000 euros).
The announcement of the finalists, attended by Massimo Franchi, the founder of the European Golden Boy award, took place at Villa Fürstenberg – set amidst 22 hectares of greenery, home to the Banca Ifis International Sculpture Park, a place where history, art and innovation come together – and was enhanced by the presence of several guests, who were welcomed on stage by Tuttosport editor Guido Vaciago and Sky Sport journalist Federica Lodi.
Following opening remarks by Raffaele Zingone, Chief Executive of Banca Ifis, the event moved on to the presentation of Banca Ifis’s study, “The Economics of Talent: How Under-21s Are Redefining Value in European Football”, led by Carmelo Carbotti, Head of Strategic Marketing & Research at Banca Ifis, with a concluding analysis by Football Club Advisor Federico Mari. Lina Souloukou addressed the topic of “The Future of the Premier League: Rising Debt and Sporting Revival”, whilst Nicola Boscaro (Chief Revenue Officer at Venezia FC) and Andrea Rogg (Chief Operating Officer at Venezia FC) presented “Bosco dello Sport and Ca’ Venezia: Investments, Community and the Future of Venezia FC”.
The event was hosted by illimity Banca Ifis – Ifis Sport: the latter is the division through which the Group supports clubs, leagues, institutions and industry operators with specialist expertise, research and dedicated financial solutions. A model that combines banking activities with in-depth knowledge of the sector to support the sustainable growth of the sports system.
The latest update to the European Golden Boy Top 100 is available at the following link: https://www.europeangoldenboy.com/european-golden-boy-top-100-powered-bytransfermarkt/
Please note: in this update, Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal was ranked number 2 in the Top 100, but the European Golden Boy rules stipulate that a player cannot win the award twice; for this reason, he does not feature amongst the finalists.
1 PAU CUBARSÍ 2007 Spagna – Barcellona
2 LAMINE YAMAL 2007 Spagna – Barcellona
3 AYYOUB BOUADDI 2007 Marocco – Manchester City
4 WARREN ZAÏRE-EMERY 2006 Francia – PSG
5 YAN DIOMANDE 2006 Costa d’Avorio – Real Madrid
6 LUKA VUŠKOVIĆ 2007 Croazia – Brighton
7 VICTOR FROHOLDT 2006 Danimarca – Porto
8 MYLES LEWIS-SKELLY 2006 Inghilterra – Arsenal
9 RAYAN 2006 Brasile – Bournemouth
10 JORREL HATO 2006 Olanda – Chelsea
11 LENNART KARL 2008 Germania – Bayern Monaco
12 ESTÊVÃO 2007 Brasile – Chelsea
13 ENDRICK 2006 Brasile – Real Madrid
14 JUNIOR KROUPI 2006 Francia – Bournemouth
15 GIANLUCA PRESTIANNI 2006 Argentina – Benfica
16 KŌNSTANTINOS KARETSAS 2007 Grecia – Borussia Dortmund
17 SAÏD EL MALA 2006 Germania – Colonia
18 JON MARTÍN 2006 Spagna – Real Sociedad
19 MARC BERNAL 2007 Spagna – Barcellona
20 KERIM ALAJBEGOVIĆ 2007 Bosnia-Erzegovina – Juventus
21 FINN JELTSCH 2006 Germania – Stoccarda
WILD CARD
CHARALAMPOS KŌSTOULAS 2007 Grecia – Brighton
JOANE GADOU 2007 Francia – Borussia Dortmund
FRANCO MASTANTUONO 2007 Argentina – Fiorentina
RODRIGO MORA 2007 Portogallo – Roma
XAVI ESPART 2007 Spagna – Barcellona
Main Partner: Poste Italiane, Sky Sport, Transfermatkt
Hosting Partner: Banca Ifis
