Lamine Yamal
Lamine Yamal Nasraoui Ebana (born 13 July 2007) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a winger for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team. Known for his flair, chance creation, and long-distance curling goals, he is regarded as one of the best players in the world.
Yamal was a member of the youth academy, La Masia, before breaking into the Barcelona first team squad in the 2023–24 season. He became the youngest player to be nominated for the Ballon d’Or at age 17 and also won the Kopa Trophy in 2024 and 2025, presented to the best young player in the world. In the following season, he was integral to Barcelona winning a domestic treble of the La Liga title, the Copa del Rey, and the Supercopa de España. At 18 years old, Yamal finished as runner-up for the 2025 Ballon d’Or.
Yamal has represented Spain internationally at various youth levels, and made his debut for the senior team in 2023, becoming the youngest player to represent and score for the country at age 16. He was selected for UEFA Euro 2024, playing an important role in helping Spain win their fourth title, while also winning the tournament’s Young Player Award. He holds multiple records in his international career, including the youngest player to appear in a UEFA European Championship final at age 17, the youngest player in a European Championship at age 16, and the youngest goalscorer in a European Championship at age 1
Early and personal life
Lamine Yamal Nasraoui Ebana was born on 13 July 2007 in Esplugues de Llobregat, in the Barcelona metropolitan area in Catalonia, to waitress Sheila Ebana and building painter Mounir Nasraoui. Yamal’s mother was born in Bata, Equatorial Guinea, and his father is from Larache, Morocco. They gave him a compound given name to honour two people, named Lamine and Yamal, who helped them financially shortly before their son was born. Yamal is a Muslim.
His parents separated when he was three, although both remained present through his childhood. The family had lived in Mataró, but around the time of his parents’ separation, Yamal’s mother moved to Granollers, where Yamal started playing football at the local club La Torreta at the age of four. He would alternate between both cities to spend time with his parents. With his father in Mataró, Yamal grew up in Rocafonda, a neighbourhood described as “forgotten, isolated and stigmatized”; he celebrates goals by making a gesture of the number 304, the last digits of the local postcode 08304. Following his success, his popularisation of the number has been credited with bringing pride and recognition to the working-class community of Rocafonda.
At six years of age, Yamal was scouted by Barcelona and was invited to training sessions at La Masia, signing for the club in 2014 and moving to Barcelona to live and train at the academy. Growing up, Yamal’s footballing idols were Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi, and Neymar.
In July 2025, Spain’s Ministry of Social Rights asked the country’s prosecutor’s office to investigate Yamal, after it was alleged that he had hired several people with dwarfism to perform at his 18th birthday party.
Family
Yamal has a younger half-brother named Keyne (born 2022) and a younger sister named Baraa. On 14 August 2024, Yamal’s father was stabbed in a car park in Mataró; his injuries were minor, and he was discharged from hospital three days later. Police arrested four people involved in the attack.
Club career
Youth career
Growing up through the youth ranks of La Masia, Yamal was soon viewed as one of the academy’s best prospects. Initially added to the Juvenil A team – already above his age grade – for the 2022–23 season, Yamal was selected by Xavi to train with the first team along with other youngsters in early September 2022. While still yet to sign his first professional contract with the club, he appeared to be one of the academy members to most impress the coach.
Yamal made his first-team debut on 29 April 2023, replacing Gavi in the 83rd minute of a 4–0 victory against Real Betis in La Liga, in which he registered a shot on target and became the fifth youngest player in La Liga’s history at 15 years, 9 months, and 16 days old, and the youngest to appear for Barcelona’s first team since the 15-year-old Armando Sagi in 1922, over a century before. He won his first title with Barça on 14 May 2023, having been part of the squad that won the 2022–23 La Liga, but missed the title celebration the following week due to international duty with Spain.
Although he remained on the Barcelona Atlètic squad throughout the season, Yamal earned his first start for the club on 20 August 2023 in a 2–0 victory over Cádiz at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys. His first start was met with a standing ovation as he was subbed off with five minutes left in the game. In his next starting appearance, Yamal was named man of the match after contributing towards two goals scored by Gavi and Robert Lewandowski in a 4–3 victory over Villarreal on 28 August. He was named the inaugural U23 Player of the Month for August as a result of his performances. On 19 September, Yamal made his Champions League debut in a 5–0 victory over Royal Antwerp. On 2 October, Yamal extended his contract with Barcelona until 2026, with a buyout clause of €1 billion. Two days later, he started in his first match of the Champions League against Porto. On 8 October, Yamal scored his first goal for the first team in a 2–2 away draw to Granada and made his first El Clásico appearance as a substitute in a 2–1 loss at home on 28 October. On 4 December, Yamal was given the inaugural Golden Boy The Youngest trophy, which is awarded to the youngest player nominated for the Golden Boy award. Subsequently, on the ceremony day, Yamal was not present due to school.
2024–25: Domestic treble
In the first match of the 2024–25 La Liga season on 18 August, Yamal assisted Lewandowski to help Barcelona equalize against Valencia in a 2–1 win. In the following match against Athletic Bilbao on 24 August, Yamal scored his first goal of the season in another 2–1 victory. On 19 September, Yamal scored his first Champions League goal, scoring an equalizer in a 2–1 loss to Monaco in the Champions League group stage, becoming the second youngest scorer in Champions League history at 17 years and 68 days, behind teammate Ansu Fati, who scored at 17 years and 40 days in October 2020. On 26 October, at the age of 17 years and 105 days, Yamal became the youngest goalscorer in El Clásico history when he scored the third goal in a 4–0 victory against Real Madrid, surpassing the record of Fati who did so at the age of 17 years and 359 days in October 2020. During the match at the Santiago Bernabeu, Yamal and his teammates Fati and Raphinha were targeted with racial abuse by a group of home supporters. On 30 April, Yamal made his 100th appearance for the club in the Champions League semi-final first leg against Inter Milan. He scored the first goal in a 3–3 draw and was praised by Inter manager Simone Inzaghi, who called Yamal “a phenomenon born every 50 years.”
2025–26: Inheriting number 10
On 27 May 2025, Yamal agreed to his first long-term contract with Barcelona, tying him to the club until 30 June 2031 and to be signed upon his eighteenth birthday. Reports indicated that Yamal’s contract could potentially reach a value of $45.3 million per year gross, including wages, bonuses, and contract fees, making him one of Barcelona’s top-paid players. On 16 July, at the contract signature event, Yamal was presented with Barcelona’s number 10 shirt, which had been vacated upon Ansu Fati’s loan to Monaco. On 16 August, in the first match of the La Liga season against Mallorca, Lamine Yamal scored his first goal for Barcelona while wearing the number 10 shirt.
Career statistics
Club
As of match played 1 October 2025[117]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
| Club | Season | League | Copa del Rey | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Barcelona B | 2022–23 | Primera Federación | 1 | 0 | — | — | 2[a] | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Barcelona | 2022–23 | La Liga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2023–24 | La Liga | 37 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 10[b] | 0 | 2[c] | 1 | 50 | 7 | |
| 2024–25 | La Liga | 35 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 13[b] | 5 | 2[c] | 2 | 55 | 18 | |
| 2025–26 | La Liga | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1[b] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | |
| Total | 77 | 16 | 6 | 3 | 24 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 111 | 27 | ||
| Career total | 78 | 16 | 6 | 3 | 24 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 114 | 27 | ||
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