GOLDEN BOY 2025
Désiré Doué beats Pau Cubarsí to win the 2025 Golden Boy
Published New:4/12/2025 - 08:06h
Updated New:4/12/2025 - 08:06h
PSG winger Désiré Doué has been chosen as the new Golden Boy after a decisive Champions League season. Barça's Pau Cubarsí, the only Barça representative among the finalists, narrowly missed out on the award.
Lamine Yamal already has a successor for the award that distinguishes the best young talent in European football. Paris Saint-Germain attacker Désiré Doué has been chosen as the new Golden Boy after a clear and practically unanimous victory. Football Club Barcelona had a representative in the final stage, Pau Cubarsí, but the Barça defender could not compete with the outstanding season of the French winger.
The award, presented annually by the Italian newspaper Tuttosport, has always maintained a strong link with Barça, a club historically prominent in the award. Lamine Yamal, winner of the 2024 edition, logically remains the most valuable young player on the planet, but according to the award's regulations, there must be a different winner each edition, and the first place cannot be repeated.
Désiré Doué dominates the Golden Boy vote
As confirmed by the organization, Doué obtained 450 out of a possible 500 points, a figure that highlights the magnitude of his season and the widespread perception that he was the most decisive young footballer in Europe. The detailed voting results have not yet been published, but the outcome is considered unquestionable: the Parisian winger was identified as the priority choice by almost all voting bodies.
The new Golden Boy has completed a spectacular year after his arrival at PSG from Rennes. In his debut season, he scored 16 goals and provided 14 assists, in addition to leaving his mark in decisive moments of the Champions League. His performance in the final against Inter, including a goal, elevated his candidacy to make it the most solid of all.
This is the list of the 23 Golden Boy trophy winners since the award's inception.
| Year | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Rafael van der Vaart | Ajax |
| 2004 | Wayne Rooney | Manchester United |
| 2005 | Lionel Messi | FC Barcelona |
| 2006 | Cesc Fàbregas | Arsenal |
| 2007 | Sergio Agüero | Atlético de Madrid |
| 2008 | Anderson | Manchester United |
| 2009 | Alexandre Pato | Milan |
| 2010 | Mario Balotelli | Manchester City |
| 2011 | Mario Götze | Borussia Dortmund |
| 2012 | Isco Alarcón | Málaga CF |
| 2013 | Paul Pogba | Juventus |
| 2014 | Raheem Sterling | Liverpool |
| 2015 | Anthony Martial | Milan |
| 2016 | Renato Sanches | Benfica |
| 2017 | Kylian Mbappé | Paris Saint-Germain |
| 2018 | Matthijs de Ligt | Ajax |
| 2019 | João Félix | Atlético de Madrid |
| 2020 | Erling Haaland | Borussia Dortmund |
| 2021 | Pedri | FC Barcelona |
| 2022 | Gavi | FC Barcelona |
| 2023 | Jude Bellingham | Real Madrid |
| 2024 | Lamine Yamal | FC Barcelona |
| 2025 | Désiré Doué | Paris Saint-Germain |
Barça, protagonist again with Pau Cubarsí
Although the glory went to Doué, Barça was once again among the best-represented clubs thanks to the presence of Pau Cubarsí, one of the 25 finalists in the competition. The Barça center-back, one of the most promising defensive talents in Europe, was recognized by the jury members for his emergence into the elite and his competitive maturity in a demanding season for the first team.
The Barça youth academy thus maintains its weight in an award historically linked to the club. From the emergence of Messi to the more recent recognitions of Gavi, Pedri, and Lamine, Barça continues to demonstrate its formative structure's ability to produce talents capable of competing internationally.
Lamine Yamal could not repeat the award
A relevant detail of this edition is that the award's regulations prevent any player from winning it twice. This left Lamine Yamal out of the running, whose candidacy would have been one of the strong favorites after his definitive breakthrough into the first team. The young Barça winger, Golden Boy in 2024, remains a generational benchmark despite not being able to contend for the award.
His absence due to regulations cleared the path for Doué, although the Frenchman would have been an equally strong candidate thanks to the impact of his performances and PSG's European title, a factor that traditionally influences voting.
A very blaugrana Golden Boy
Since 2003, Barça has always had a presence or influence in the Golden Boy. The recognition of Doué comes after years of Barça dominance, which explains why this edition was watched with particular attention from a culé perspective.
The Golden Boy award winners from FC Barcelona are Lionel Messi (2005), Pedri (2021), Gavi (2022), and Lamine Yamal (2024). These four players have won the award recognizing the best player under 21 in the world, making Barcelona the club with the most winners in the award's history.
FC Barcelona players who have won the Golden Boy
- Leo Messi - 2005
- Pedri González - 2021
- Pablo Gavi - 2022
- Lamine Yamal - 2024
The Golden Boy 2025 already has a new owner, but Barça's prominence remains. Doué takes the baton from Lamine and confirms a new generation of talents that will shape the future of European football. For culé fans, the news is interpreted with a mix of pride and ambition: pride for Barça's presence among the chosen ones and ambition for the next generation led by Lamine and Cubarsí to once again win awards of this magnitude.
