Pau Cubarsi, Endrick and Estêvao are among the leading names on the shortlist for the 2026 European Golden Boy award, with some of the brightest young talents in European football now in contention for the prestigious prize.
Organised by Italian newspaper Tuttosport, the Golden Boy is awarded annually to the best Under-21 player playing in Europe.
Barcelona have three nominees in Cubarsí, Marc Bernal and Xavi Espart, while the Premier League also has a strong presence through Chelsea’s Estêvao, Arsenal’s Myles Lewis-Skelly, Bournemouth duo Rayan and Junior Kroupi, and Brighton pair Luka Vušković and Charalampos Kostoulas.
Other nominees include Gianluca Prestianni of Benfica, Ayyoub Bouaddi of Manchester City, Konstantinos Karetsas of Borussia Dortmund, Warren Zaïre-Emery of Paris Saint-Germain, Saïd El Mala of Köln, Yan Diomande of Real Madrid, Jon Martín of Real Sociedad, Victor Froholdt of Porto, Finn Jeltsch of Stuttgart, Kerim Alajbegović of Juventus, Jorrel Hato of Chelsea, Lennart Karl of Bayern Munich, Joane Gadou of Borussia Dortmund, Franco Mastantuono of Fiorentina and Rodrigo Mora of Roma.
Beyond the star names, the shortlist reflects how quickly several of these youngsters have moved from being highly rated prospects to players trusted at senior level.
Cubarsí is a clear example. The Barcelona defender has already established himself in the first team despite his age, while Zaïre-Emery and Lewis-Skelly have similarly forced their way into senior football.
For Endrick and Estêvao, the nomination adds another measure of their progress since leaving Brazil for Europe. Both arrived with considerable attention around their potential and are now being judged alongside players already making an impact at major European clubs.
The winner will be determined through votes from journalists across Europe, with a wildcard slot also expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
