Who’s going to take the title?
The shortlist for this year’s Golden Boy award was announced on Wednesday, featuring 20 players selected for this prestigious honor, along with five additional “Wild Card” candidates. This award is open only to players born after January 1, 2005. Various performance metrics—such as on-field performances, playing time, and the quality of the teams each player represents—were used to help online users determine the winner. Additional factors, including national team performances and achievements in European competitions, were also considered.
Since its establishment in 2003, the Golden Boy award has primarily recognized forwards and midfielders, with only one defender, Matthijs de Ligt (2018), having won. As a result, the award is often seen as a stepping stone for players aspiring to compete for the Ballon d’Or in the future. In the past five years, three players from Barcelona (Pedri in 2021, Gavi in 2022, and Lamine Yamal in 2024) have won the accolade, while Erling Haaland took home the award in 2020 and Jude Bellingham was crowned in 2023. Curious about this year’s nominees? Below is a complete list of candidates ranked by market value.
Golden Boy 2025: 20-player shortlist
In addition to the 20-player shortlist, which was narrowed down from a pool of 100 candidates based on the aforementioned criteria, five “Wild Card” players were also added for voting purposes. These five players are listed below in order of their market value.
Five-man “Wild Card” shortlist
