Lamine Yamal is not planning to stop at one Ballon d’Or.
“If I don’t win the Ballon d’Or, the next year I have to win it. And if I win it, I want to win five more,” the 19-year-old said in an interview with L’Equipe published on 22 September.
Yamal finished second at last year’s ceremony behind Paris Saint-Germain’s Ousmane Dembélé, at the Théâtre du Châtelet on 22 September 2025. The 2026 edition is scheduled for the London Palladium on 26 October, and he arrives with a Spain World Cup medal to add to another season of silverware at Barcelona.
“There aren’t many 18-year-olds who go to a Ballon d’Or ceremony thinking they have options to win,” he said.
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“I see it as an achievement. I finished second at 18 years.”
His own definition of what the prize should reward followed.
“It’s the prize for the best player of the year, the different player, the one who’s glad to see play, the one who has that magic, who makes you smile, who makes you want to watch a game just for him.”
“I think my way of playing is my strongest argument and what makes me different.”
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‘I want to be Lamine Yamal’
Asked about the constant Messi comparisons, Yamal turned the framing around.
“I don’t want to compare myself to anyone. I want to be Lamine Yamal, I want you to remember me as Lamine Yamal, and I hope to be among the greats.”
He was equally generous about the other contenders this year.
“If a person says ‘Messi deserves it’ or ‘Rodri deserves it,’ it is totally respectable.”
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The interview’s headline line was about legacy.
“I play to make history, so that 30 years from now the young people will say, ‘He was really good too.'”
Madrid is the club goal
For Barcelona, the trophy Yamal wants next is European.
“We all want to be in Madrid to play the Champions League final.”
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The 2026-27 final is scheduled for Atlético Madrid’s Estadio Metropolitano on 5 June 2027, the venue’s second Champions League final after Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Tottenham in 2019.
Yamal also spoke about the dressing-room fit with Raphinha and Barcelona’s summer arrivals.
“Even with the most ‘elder’, like Rapha, we are like brothers.”
“They are on the same level, and above all they have adapted very well. We’re getting along like we’ve been together for four years.”
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‘I had to change my role’
Yamal helped Spain win a second world title on 19 July, beating Argentina 1-0 at MetLife Stadium through a Ferran Torres goal in the 106th minute.
“My goal on the pitch is always to win. And I saw that, to win, I had to change my role.”
