The 2025–26 season was a breakout year for Kerim Alajbegović, whose stellar showings with RB Salzburg earned him links with Chelsea and a big-money move to Juventus worth $34.6 million (€30 million) in the summer.

A low profile is going to harm Alajbegović in the battle for this award. The young winger put up 13 goals and four assists in all competitions for the Austrian side last season which, while absolutely nothing to disrespect, does not match up to the level of accomplishments of the rest of the players on this list.

At just 18 years old, Alajbegović has time left to win this award, and a big season with Juve would do his chances no harm for 2027.

The jump up to the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen did not faze Ibrahim Maza. A stellar first year in top-flight soccer led to a reputation as one of the globe’s top youngsters, and rightly so.

Maza did not need long to force his way into Bayer’s starting lineup, with his elite dribbling and press resistance immediately attracting glances of admiration from across the globe. With five goals and seven assists, the potential is obvious.

The 20-year-old is not ready to win this award and still has another jump to make before he can be viewed as an elite talent, but Maza is undoubtedly on the right track.

Warren Zaïre-Emery may be a victim of the public perception of his role. When you think about Paris Saint-Germain’s strongest midfield unit, the 20-year-old’s name usually doesn’t come up alongside Vitinha, João Neves and Fabián Ruiz.

That creates a perception that Zaïre-Emery, who has just finished his fourth full season as a senior, may not be at the top of his game, but the numbers actually paint a different picture. Indeed, nobody in the PSG squad actually played more minutes than his total of 4,224 across all competitions, with Zaïre-Emery just one of three to actually reach 3,000 minutes.

He started 15 games in the Champions League, coming off the bench in only the first and last matches of the tournament, but Zaïre-Emery simply does not bring the hype you need to win this award. He’ll finish far lower than he actually deserves.

While Zaïre-Emery may need a boost in the PR department, Johan Manzambi certainly does not.

Seven goals and nine assists for the versatile midfielder at Stuttgart paved the way for a spot in Switzerland’s 2026 World Cup squad. Manzambi was among the primary breakout stars of the tournament with a return of five goal contributions in four appearances. A move to Aston Villa worth the best part of $80 million soon followed.

Manzambi, 20, is full of raw potential as a powerful, ball-carrying forward, and has been presented the platform upon which to build on that.

Thirteen Premier League goals and transfer rumors tipping Europe’s elite to spend nine-figure sums on him will both aid Éli Junior Kroupi’s push for this award.

The France U-21 international just enjoyed one of the best breakout seasons the Premier League has ever seen from a player his age, and there is a confidence that Kroupi is on track for bigger and better things once he returns from foot surgery for Bournemouth.

An excellent year for Kroupi but one that, when compared to those around him in the running for this award, is not going to be enough.

Bayern Munich boast one of the best forward lines on the planet, if not the best. Breaking into that setup is an unenviable task, but it is one 18-year-old Lennart Karl is embracing.

To make 39 appearances across all competitions, including eight in the Champions League and a total of 24 starts, is nothing short of astounding for the versatile attacking midfielder, who ended the campaign with nine goals and eight assists.

It was a near-perfect breakthrough year for Karl, who will hope to use the 2026–27 campaign to prove he deserves a place among the elite.

There feels like quite an obvious jump up to the top four in this race, with Ayyoub Bouaddi one of those players that comes across more like a senior star than an emerging youngster.

Bouaddi left Lille this summer with a total of 96 appearances to his name—not bad for an 18-year-old—and, after a breakout World Cup with Morocco, sealed a whopping $117 million switch to Manchester City this summer.

His tender age means Bouaddi still has plenty more opportunities to win this award, and he could be tough to ignore if he comes anywhere close to replacing Rodri at the Etihad Stadium.

With just 46 senior appearances to his name by the end of last season, Yan Diomande’s rise has been rapid. Thirteen goals and 10 assists for RB Leipzig led to a transfer to Real Madrid in a package worth as much as $160 million including add-ons. Not bad for a player whose senior debut only came in March 2025.

Diomande took the world by storm, doing so in a massive league like the Bundesliga before showing out at the World Cup with Côte d’Ivoire to prove himself as one of the world’s top youngsters. His electric dribbling has left many drooling over what the future could hold for Diomande.

This was a stunning year from Diomande and one which could easily have led to Kopa Trophy glory at another time, had the competition not been so fierce.

A starter for the club that won La Liga and the national team that won the World Cup, Pau Cubarsí is exactly what this award is about. He may only be 19 years old, but the center back is unquestionably amond the world’s elite.

Nothing else needs to be said about Cubarsí, whose total of 3,977 minutes for Barcelona last season was bettered only by goalkeeper Joan García. He played every minute for Spain en route to glory this summer and is unquestionably among the best in the world in his position.

Even that is not going to be enough, however.

Can you imagine the sort of season you would need to have to be able to claim the title of the world’s best U-21 player in 2026?

Lamine Yamal just put up 24 goals and 18 assists for Barcelona, having now spent two years widely recognized as one of the best players on the planet. Even a slow World Cup, hampered by injury, is not going to harm his case for this award.

Nobody other than Yamal has ever won the Kopa Trophy twice, and he’s about to win it a third time. Considering he’ll only turn 21 in July 2028, don’t bet against him still adding a couple more.