Lamine Yamal walked out of the Palladium Theatre in London on Monday with the Kopa Trophy in hand for the third year running and no Ballon d’Or to show for it.
The 19-year-old was called on stage as one of the top three, behind winner Harry Kane and runner-up Kylian Mbappé.
Later that evening he shared nine photographs on Instagram. The caption read:
“IT WILL COME, good things take time, I trust the path I’m building. Without a hurry, with excitement and with tranquility that someday my time will come. Congratulations to the winners, my focus is again on what’s important, to make FC Barcelona win again.”
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Three Ballon d’Or top-tens before his 20th birthday
Yamal did not travel home empty-handed. The Kopa Trophy for the best player under 21 is now his for a third year running, and he has finished inside the Ballon d’Or top ten in each of the three editions since his senior breakthrough, as Yahoo Sports reported.
He arrived in London with substantial backing. Barcelona took La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup in 2025/26, and he was part of the Spain squad that won the 2026 World Cup.
Kane picks out Yamal
Asked about the runners-up after collecting the main prize, Kane steered the conversation to the Barcelona winger.
“He’s an incredible player,” he told Yahoo Sports.
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“I mean, what he’s delivering at this age is truly unbelievable.”
The England captain noted that at Yamal’s age he was still out on loan, part of a slower rise that ended with a 51-game, 61-goal Bayern Munich season and a domestic treble in 2025/26.
Monday was the 70th Ballon d’Or and the first held outside France, moved to the Palladium Theatre to honour Stanley Matthews, the first ever recipient of the award. Kane became the first English winner of the prize since Michael Owen in 2001.
Barcelona return to La Liga action on Saturday 31 October against Alavés at the Spotify Camp Nou, with kick-off at 9pm local time.
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