The Golden Boy is an award established by Italian sports newspaper Tuttosport, that is given by sports journalists to a young male footballer playing in Europe perceived to have been the most impressive during a calendar year (two halves to two separate seasons). All nominees must be under the age of 21 and play in a European nation's top tier. Apart from the main award, an additional one, Golden Boy Web, is decided by online users.
Rafael van der Vaart became the first recipient in 2003 by winning it at the age of 20 years and 304 days. To this day, he remains the oldest winner of the award. Lionel Messi is the only player to have won both the prestigious Golden Boy award and the Ballon d'Or. He received the Golden Boy in 2005 at the age of 18 years and 173 days, and remained the youngest winner until Gavi won the award in 2022 at 18 years and 77 days, who was also surpassed by Lamine Yamal in 2024, winning the award at the age of 17 years and 137 days. The current winner is Désiré Doué from Paris Saint-Germain.
Selection The prize was established by Italian sports newspaper Tuttosport in 2003. Newspapers that now participate in voting include Bild (Germany), Blick (Switzerland), A Bola (Portugal), L'Équipe (France), France Football (France), Marca (Spain), Mundo Deportivo (Spain), Ta Nea (Greece), Sport Express (Russia), De Telegraaf (Netherlands), and The Times (United Kingdom). Each juror is allowed to nominate five players; the juror allocates 10 points to their most impressive pick, 7 for second, 5 for third, 3 for fourth, and 1 point for fifth.
Winners Year Winner Club(s)PositionBirth yearAward ageRef(s)2003 Ajax Midfielder 1983 2004 Everton Manchester United Forward 1985 2005 Barcelona Forward 1987 2006 Arsenal Midfielder 1987 2007 Atlético Madrid Forward 1988 2008 Anderson Manchester United Midfielder 1988 2009 Milan Forward 1989 2010 Inter Milan Manchester City Forward 1990 2011 Borussia Dortmund Midfielder 1992 2012 Isco Málaga Midfielder 1992 2013 Juventus Midfielder 1993 2014 Liverpool Forward 1994 2015 Monaco Manchester United Forward 1995 2016 Benfica Bayern Munich Midfielder 1997 2017 Kylian Mbappé Monaco Paris Saint-Germain Forward 1998 2018 Ajax Defender 1999 2019 Benfica Atlético Madrid Forward1999 2020 Borussia Dortmund Forward2000 2021 Pedri Barcelona Midfielder2002 2022 Gavi Barcelona Midfielder2004 2023 Jude Bellingham Borussia Dortmund Real Madrid Midfielder2003 2024 Lamine Yamal Barcelona Forward2007 2025 Désiré Doué Paris Saint-Germain Forward2005
Awards won by position
PositionWin(s)ForwardMidfielderDefender
Awards won by nationality
CountryWin(s)Year(s) Spain52006, 2012, 2021, 2022, 2024 France2013, 2015, 2017, 2025 England2004, 2014, 2023 Netherlands2003, 2018 Argentina2005, 2007 Brazil2008, 2009 Portugal2016, 2019 Italy2010 Germany2011 Norway2020
Awards won by club
Year in bold have shared the win with other clubs.
+ClubWin(s)Year(s) Barcelona2005, 2021, 2022, 2024 Borussia Dortmund2011, 2020, 2023 Manchester United2004, 2008, 2015 Ajax2003, 2018 Atlético Madrid2007, 2019 Monaco 2015, 2017 Benfica2016, 2019 Paris Saint-Germain2017, 2025 Everton2004 Arsenal2006 Milan2009 Manchester City2010 Inter Milan2010 Málaga2012 Juventus2013 Liverpool2014 Bayern Munich2016 Real Madrid2023
See also Bravo Award Kopa Trophy Ballon d'Or Golden Girl (award)
Notes
References