Lamine Yamal: A Global Phenomenon Turns 18
Most footballers have not yet made their professional debut by the time they turn 18. However, Lamine Yamal is not a common footballer. The Barcelona and Spanish National Team forward celebrates his birthday with the world at his feet. His short career already boasts champion medals in the European Championship and LaLiga, as well as spectacular plays, assists, and goals that have accumulated millions of views worldwide. Outside the field, he has shown unusual confidence in teenagers taking their first steps in football, challenging his opponents on social media and without fear of making bold statements. So far, all this has translated into success at both club and national team level. After becoming European champion with Spain a year ago, he led Barcelona to a domestic treble last season, as well as reaching the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since 2019. Not even Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo were so prodigious before turning 18. This does not mean that Yamal will surpass their careers, but if he continues to develop and improve at the current rate, it is impossible to predict his ceiling. Now, going from a talented teenager to a global superstar, he faces the challenge of staying grounded and not getting carried away by the distractions he may encounter. So far, he has remained unfazed by everything that has come his way. Below, we review 18 key moments that have shaped his career.
1. Blessed by Messi
Perhaps Yamal was destined for greatness. In a twist of fate, as a baby he was paired with a teenage Lionel Messi for a charity calendar organized by Barcelona and UNICEF in 2007. Each month featured a player with a child from Catalonia, chosen by lottery. In the January photograph, Messi, in the early stages of his career at Barça, bathes Yamal, 5 months old, while the baby’s mother watches. The photo, hard to believe, resurfaced last summer, when Yamal, at 16, shone at the Euro 2024 in Germany.“Not before, but now I believe in destiny,” said the photographer, Joan Monfort.
Joan Monfort
2. Representing the 304
Every time Yamal scores a goal, he celebrates by pointing to the number 304. These are the last three digits of the postal code of Rocafonda, the neighborhood of Mataró where he grew up, 20 miles north of Barcelona.
If you go to the area, you’ll find “304” painted on buildings and containers. That has always been the case, but what is also true now is that there’s another message that’s increasingly present: “More Lamine Yamales, less evictions.” The Barça teenager is not only putting the focus on his hometown, known for its high level of immigration and the risk of poverty faced by its inhabitants, but he’s also showing a mirror to the next generation so they can surpass their limits.
3. Waving your family’s flags
The flags of Morocco and Equatorial Guinea, in addition to the Spanish one, have frequently appeared on Yamal’s boots since his debut with Barça. His father, Mounir, is from Morocco and his mother, Sheila, is from Equatorial Guinea, and although he has always represented Spain internationally, he has never ignored his origins. Yamal is also especially close to his cousin, Mohamed, who acts as his driver and is rarely separated from him, and to his paternal grandmother, Fátima, who still lives in Rocafonda. He attributes to his parents the fact of keeping him grounded and says that the sacrifices that his fame entails are worth it for his family.“Seeing the tranquility that my mother and father have is something I would never have imagined,” he said earlier this year. “My grandmother calls me and tells me how well she is doing. It’s priceless. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
Lamine Yamal
4. Barça takes a risk
All the Barça needed to sign Yamal from C.F. La Torreta in 2014 was the promise to send a youth team to participate in a local tournament. The Barça’s football director at that time, Jordi Roura, had received a brilliant report from a scout in Mataró. Yamal was invited to a trial and Roura, very discreetly, told him that “we decided it was worth betting on him”.5. First-team debut (vs. Real Betis, April 29, 2023)
A peculiarity of Yamal’s debut with Barça was that the electronic scoreboard announcing his debut in the first team at 15 years old showed the numbers 304 in order: ’30:41′ (No. 30 for Gavi, the outgoing player, and No. 41 for Yamal). Yamal’s debut was the result of his rapid rise in the club’s youth academy, La Masia, as part of the talented 2007 generation, which also includes Barça first-team teammates Pau Cubarsí and Marc Bernal. He scored 357 goals in 249 official matches for the club’s youth teams, astonishing his teammates as he progressed through the different age groups.At 15 years and 9 months old, Xavi Hernández, then coach of Barça, had already seen enough. It was time. With 83:48 on the scoreboard in a LaLiga match against Real Betis on April 29, 2023, Yamal was introduced for what, until now, was his only senior appearance at the Camp Nou, as renovation work began shortly after.6. Record man for the club and the national teamAfter becoming the youngest player to represent Barça in LaLiga against Betis, Yamal embarked on a record-breaking streak for his precociousness. He is the youngest player to score in LaLiga; to debut with Spain; to score with Spain; to score in a European Championship; to play in a European Championship final; to score against Real Madrid in a Clásico; to reach 100 matches with Barça; to score in a Champions League semi-final… You get the idea.“He came to play a match with the 2006 generation,” said the United States and Barça goalkeeper, Diego Kochen.
Diego Kochen
7. Comparisons with Messi
When Yamal debuted with Barça, the competition for a place on the right wing came from Raphinha and Ousmane Dembélé. At the beginning of his first full season, after Dembélé’s departure to Paris Saint-Germain and Raphinha’s red card against Getafe, Xavi was willing to give him the right wing. Yamal’s consistency made it impossible to leave him out, and given the fact that he played from the right with his left foot, comparisons with Messi came. His importance to the team grew, finishing the campaign with seven goals and nine assists in 50 appearances. At the end of the season, even Xavi had difficulty avoiding the similarities with Messi. He finally gave in after Yamal’s goal gave Mallorca a 1-0 victory in March 2024, when he acknowledged: “There are flashes”.
The Mallorca coach, Javier Aguirre, had a slightly more amusing take on the comparisons. “I saw Messi for the first time when he was in the Barça youth team and he was like a rat, moving and scoring goal after goal,” he said. “[Yamal] also has the look of a rat, the rascal.”8. That goal against France
Yamal made himself known to the world with an impressive goal in Spain’s victory in the semi-final of the Euro 2024 against France. The goal itself was brilliant and typical of Yamal, who went in with his left foot to send the ball into the top corner, but it was also full of narrative. Before the match, French midfielder Adrien Rabiot had said that Yamal still needed to do more to prove his worth. Yamal responded before the match by posting on Instagram: “Move in silence. Only speak when it’s time to say checkmate.” At the end of the match, after eliminating Rabiot and France from the competition, Yamal said “speak now” to the cameras, followed by a simple message on social media: “Checkmate”. This was a 16-year-old showing ridiculous levels of talent, character, and audacity for his age.
9. Becoming European Champion
Yamal will never forget the summer of 2024. In Germany, while studying for his high school exams, he was also planning to conquer Europe. Alongside Nico Williams, his wing play was one of the symbols of Spain’s success, who defeated England 2-1 in the final the day after his 17th birthday. The Barça winger delivered when it mattered, creating or scoring a goal in every knockout match: assisting Fabián Ruiz against Georgia and Dani Olmo against Germany, scoring against France and assisting Williams in the final. Yamal finished the European Championship with a record of four assists in the tournament, the Young Player of the Tournament award, a place in the Team of the Tournament and, most importantly, as European champion.10. New skill unlocked
11. Awards Season
His exploits with Barcelona and Spain have marked him as the greatest young talent in football. As a result, his individual honors are already accumulating. Yamal is the current holder of the Golden Boy award and the Kopa Trophy, prestigious awards given to the best male player under 21 years old, and he ranked eighth in the Ballon d’Or last year.
12. Building the Brand
When Yamal jumped onto the field for the 4-0 victory in the Clásico in Madrid in October, he did so sporting custom Barça braces on his teeth. It’s one of the examples of how he has leveraged brands and social media, the braces were accompanied by a flow of online content, in a way that makes him stand out almost as much as he does on the field. As brands rush to work with him, from Adidas to Beats, superstars want to associate with him. Travis Scott became the latest musician to appear on the Barça jersey this year as part of the club’s sponsorship deal with Spotify; Yamal has become one of the only 105 people followed on Instagram by rapper Scott, who doesn’t follow anyone else related to Barça, not even the club. But it’s the naturalness of Yamal’s content that sets him apart from the usual post-match clichés that most players share. He interacts with fans (occasionally even using fan art as a profile picture), promotes matches creatively (as seen with the clash with Rabiot) and embraces viral moments, as was the case last month when he told a group of girls who wanted to take a picture that his name was Ryan… something he has played with ever since.13. Champions League Classic
The Inter Milan coach, Simone Inzaghi, was stunned. “This is a talent that comes along once every 50 years,” he said after watching Barca, inspired by Yamal, come back from 2-0 to draw 3-3 in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final between the two teams in April. If the goal against France announced Yamal to a global football audience, his performance against Inter took him to the next level. At times almost alone, he dragged Barca back into the match, scoring a ridiculous goal to start the comeback. After dribbling in the area, he somehow created space to shoot through a mass of bodies, and the ball grazed the post before going in. Barca eventually lost a ridiculous tie 7-6 on aggregate, but Yamal’s reputation was reinforced again.
14. Royal Approval
King Felipe VI of Spain is already familiar with Yamal. The first time they met, during the European Championship last summer, the king couldn’t believe it when Yamal told him he was only 16 years old. He had a better idea of what to expect when he greeted Yamal, who was wearing two pairs of sunglasses, after Barca beat Madrid to win the Copa del Rey final a year later at La Cartuja in Seville. It was the beginning of a period in which Yamal established himself as the leader of Barca, despite the good seasons of Pedri, Raphinha and Lewandowski. It included that tie against Inter, but also a crazy 4-3 victory in the Clásico, when Yamal scored another outstanding goal and a 2-0 derby win over Espanyol, when he scored the winning goal with an effort similar to the one he made against France, as Flick’s team won the LaLiga title.15. New contract, new number
After all that, how could Barça not give him a new contract? Yamal scored 18 goals and provided 25 assists in 55 appearances as a 17-year-old player in the 2024-25 season. He appeared in almost every big moment, as Barça won LaLiga, the Copa del Rey, and the Spanish Super Cup. Then he signed a new contract, negotiated by super-agent Jorge Mendes, until 2031. This was followed by a new shirt number: number 19 was changed to number 10. It’s obvious from Barça’s point of view, given the number of “Yamal” shirts already present on a match day and throughout the city. The iconic number 10, previously worn by Messi, will give a new boost to shirt sales and consolidate the iconic status of their new star.16. Ballon d’Or Claim
“Yamal made a statement tonight and showed that he should win the Ballon d’Or,” said Spanish coach Luis de la Fuente after the 5-4 victory in the UEFA Nations League semi-final against France in June. Spain lost in the final to Portugal, but the case had been made for Yamal to win the Ballon d’Or, the award that crowns the best player in the game. One of his main rivals to win it is Dembélé, from PSG and France, and the pre-match attention had focused on it being an opportunity for one of them to claim the award. “If they want us to play for it on Thursday, then let’s play,” Yamal had said before the match. The Ballon d’Or may not arrive this year, but it already seems a question of when and not if he wins it.
17. Vacation with an idol
Comparisons to Messi are unavoidable, but Yamal has always felt a great affection for another former Barça star: Neymar. It can be seen in his way of playing, in the tricks and in the bold nature, but also in the way he has already imitated the Brazilian. There have been recreations of Neymar’s goal celebrations, he dyed his hair blonde before the Copa del Rey final (as Neymar has done several times) and then, this summer, he spent his holidays in Brazil with his “idol”. The pair enjoyed a few days together at Neymar’s house in Rio de Janeiro, playing foot-volley, relaxing by the pool and exchanging shirts.18. Outperforming Other Prodigies
There have been many good teenagers in the history of football, but we have rarely seen someone do what Yamal has done before turning 18. He has played 127 games for club and country, scoring 25 goals and winning a series of individual and collective trophies. Even Neymar, breaking through with Santos in Brazil, had only scored 19 times before turning 18. Erling Haaland (12), Kylian Mbappé (7), Cristiano Ronaldo (5) and Messi (1) did not come close to Yamal’s numbers. Perhaps that’s to be expected, given that the Barça star has already made more appearances before turning 18 than Neymar, Haaland, Mbappé, Ronaldo and Messi combined at the same age. That doesn’t mean Yamal will surpass them all. Football is also full of precocious talents who have faded for a number of different reasons, whether it be injuries, dealing with growing expectations or the simple fact that players can reach their peak at different ages. As for the short term, Yamal has very clear goals: to win a Champions League with Barça and a FIFA World Cup with Spain. Both could happen in 2026. If they do, he can claim to have “completed” football at 19. That said, a year is a long time in football. Especially when it’s more than 5% of your entire life.
