Golden Boy reveals its 20+5 candidates, with Cubarsí the favourite

The Golden Boy reveals its 20+5 candidates today, with Cubarsí in the role of favourite. The award recognises the best player under 21 representing a European club during the period from December 2025 to December 2026.

The competition is organised each year by Tuttosport and also includes two parallel awards, presented since 2018: the women’s Golden Boy, for the best under-21 female player in Europe, and the men’s Golden Boy Web. The latter is decided by votes cast by internet users on Tuttosport’s website.

The 20+5 candidates are to be announced in Venezia, selected from an initial list of 100 players put forward by Tuttosport. The final winner will be chosen by an international jury of 50 European journalists. The ceremony is scheduled for Turin in early December.

Raphael Van der Vaart was the first winner, in 2003; the latest is Désiré Doué, the French PSG player honoured in 2025. This year, the award is open to players born on or after 1 January 2006. It cannot be won more than once by the same person, which rules out Lamine Yamal, the 2024 winner. Pau Cubarsí, meanwhile, is being presented as this edition’s favourite.