Lamine Yamal: Barcelona’s Teen Star Lights Up a Dream Season

Barcelona has won their 28th Spanish league title, and the biggest story of the season is 17-year-old Lamine Yamal, a rising star who has taken the football world by storm.

Yamal, who came through Barcelona’s famous La Masia academy like Gavi and Ansu Fati, made a big impression last summer when he helped Spain win the European Championship. Since then, his magical play has reminded many fans of Lionel Messi.

Last month, Yamal played his 100th game for Barcelona—three years younger than Messi was at the same point. In that match, a 3-3 draw against Inter Milan, he became the youngest player ever to score in a Champions League semi-final.

Breaking records has become normal for Yamal. He was the youngest goalscorer in European Championship history after a beautiful long-range goal against France. Spain went on to beat England in the final, and Yamal was named Young Player of the Tournament.

He’s the youngest player ever to debut and score for Spain, and the youngest to do so in LaLiga, the Champions League, and the Euros. He also holds records as the youngest player in a Clasico and the youngest scorer in both the Super Cup and Copa del Rey.

Many now see Yamal as a favorite to win the 2025 Ballon d’Or.

Even though Barcelona didn’t make it to the Champions League final—losing a close match to Inter Milan—Yamal stood out. He almost scored in extra time, but was stopped by great saves and bad luck.

This season, Yamal has been the heart of Barcelona’s attack. He gave 15 assists in LaLiga and 25 in all competitions, along with 17 goals in 53 matches. He also scored the first goal in the 2-0 win over Espanyol that won Barca the title.

Yamal’s efforts helped coach Hansi Flick’s team become a goal-scoring machine. Along with Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha, the trio scored 91 of Barcelona’s 169 goals this season.

As the season ends, fans everywhere are excited to see what Yamal will do next.

His next big test comes soon—in Germany next month—when Spain will try to win the Nations League again. It’s another chance for Yamal to show he might be the best player in the world.