In collaboration with Tuttosport 

©TM/IMAGO

The race for the Golden Boy is on. As it has done every year since 2003, Italian sports newspaper *Tuttosport* is launching the competition for the coveted award for the best U21 player of the year and presenting the shortlist of 100 talents. The big change this year is the brand new partnership with Transfermarkt as the main sponsor. Using a scoring system developed by TM specifically for this occasion, a decision has been made on who makes it into the “European Golden Boy Top 100 powered by Transfermarkt”.

The shortlist is based on a combination of performance data, potential, league and club strength, and market value, to determine the successor to Désiré Doué. The Premier League is strongly represented this time with 21 candidates – no other league has more nominees. A total of 14 European top-flight leagues are represented, with Serie A providing just four talents – the same number as Paris Saint-Germain or Chelsea, and even one fewer than FC Porto alone. France leads the way among the nominated nations with 13 players, ahead of England (10), Spain (8), Germany, Brazil and the Netherlands (7 each).

How it works: The road to the next Golden Boy

We start with the “European Golden Boy Top 100”, followed by a new list every month. This means that players currently missing from the list can still secure a place over the course of the year. All talents born in 2006 or later and playing in one of the 25 strongest European top-flight leagues are considered. In October, the list will be narrowed down to the top 20, from which an international jury of experts will select the Golden Boy 2026.

TM Managing Director Thomas Lintz says: “With Tuttosport and Transfermarkt, two strong brands in international football are expanding their partnership. Following last year’s successful collaboration on the ‘Golden Boy Web’, the jointly developed ‘European Golden Boy Top 100’ ranking is the next logical step. It combines the prestige of the Golden Boy with Transfermarkt’s data expertise – and we are delighted to be able to make a key contribution to this prestigious young talent award as the exclusive data provider.”

‘European Golden Boy Top 100 powered by Transfermarkt’ – Who will succeed Doué?

PSG can hope to defend their title and are fielding no fewer than four talents: midfielders Warren Zaïre-Emery and Senny Mayulu, as well as forwards Ibrahim Mbaye and Dro Fernández. Also represented are big names such as Lamine Yamal – currently the world’s most valuable footballer alongside Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappé, and Myles Lewis-Skelly, who aims to break PSG’s dominance in the Champions League final with Arsenal.

The Premier League provides the most candidates with 21 players, followed by the Bundesliga (16) and Ligue 1 (16). The fact that Serie A is represented by just four players and is even significantly outnumbered by the Eredivisie (8) reflects the trend in Serie A of relying too rarely on young talent. Up-and-coming players from leagues away from the limelight are also well represented – including Greece’s Super League (1), Poland’s Ekstraklasa (2) and Turkey’s Süper Lig (2). The list brings together talent from a wide variety of football cultures and competitions – consolidated in the specially developed Transfermarkt Score.