Lamine Yamal is 18 and already has two Laureus awards to his name.
Last night, Lamine Yamal was crowned Laureus World Young Sportsperson of the Year at the Palacio de Cibeles in Madrid, the very first recipient of this brand-new honor.
The figures speak for themselves after 2025, with Lamine Yamal netting 18 goals, contributing 21 assists and a domestic treble win with Barcelona, comprising La Liga, Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup at only 18 years of age.
In addition, he is the youngest player to compete in a European Championship, the youngest scorer of one and the youngest player to feature in a final.
He's been recognized with the Kopa Trophy on two occasions, and he hasn't achieved these feat by breaking arbitrary records. The records have stood for decades and he's smashed most of them well before reaching legal drinking age in most countries.
Twelve months prior, Lamine Yamal won the Breakthrough of the Year at the same event. Tonight he's added a second, different trophy. Two years, two awards.
Most touching about the ceremony was who he chose to highlight when receiving his award. Not a coach, nor a teammate. He mentioned Messi. "He is more than an idol. I think everyone respects him for what he has achieved, he has been part of childhood of all children, as we played in the park or school and I hope I will be able to follow in his footsteps."
Lionel Messi is still the only football player to have won the prestigious Laureus World Sportsman of the Year. Whether Yamal can achieve such heights, is a conversation to be had at a different time as honestly speaking, there's much too early to judge.
However, what cannot be denied is that he's achieved an incredible start and established a benchmark for himself.
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