Ayoub Bouaoudi advances to third place in the Golden Boy Award 2026

Moroccan midfielder Ayoub Bouaadi (18) has risen to third place in the current ranking of the 2026 Golden Boy, awarded annually by the Italian newspaper Tuttosport to the best under-21 player in Europe. My promise was two places ahead of his ranking about a month ago, when he was fifth, in a season described by European sports reports as exceptional. Bouaoudi was included in the preliminary list of 100 nominees for the award along with another Moroccan, Abdelhamid Ait Boudlal, the French defender of Rennes, to attend Morocco with two names in This is an arrangement that puts my promise at the forefront of the continent. The Golden Boy Award, awarded since 2003, is decided by a vote of a panel of 50 European sports journalists. My promise is currently behind Barcelona defender Pao Coparsi, the leader in the rankings, and his colleague Lamine Yamal in second place, despite his ineligibility to win the title for holding it in an earlier version. The Moroccan player is ahead of Frenchman WarrenZairi-Emery and Ivorian Jan Dioumande. The top five names in the 2026 Golden Boy Ranking are currently the club's player ranking 1 paw Coparsi Barcelona 2 Lamine Yamal Barcelona 3 Ayoub Promises Manchester City 4 Warren Zairie - Emery Paris Saint-Germain 5 Jan Diomandé Real Madrid from Lille to Manchester City with a record deal This progress comes after a crucial summer in the march of my promise, who moved from French Lille to English Manchester City for about 100 million euros, with a contract that extends five years until 2031. The Moroccan made his UEFA Champions League debut with his new club against Porto, Portugal, in a 2-0 City win, and was praised His coach Enzo Marisca said he had “never seen him confused” and described his performance as“brilliant”. Why does this matter to Moroccans? He chose two promises to represent the Moroccan team after hesitation between France and Morocco, and he emerged during the 2026 World Cup with a performance that attracted the attention of major English clubs before moving to Manchester City. Besides Golden Boy, the player is also nominated for the “Cuba” award, while the winner of the title will be known at a ceremony in London on October 26. The prominence of my promise at the top of the European rating is a further indication of the momentum of a new generation of Moroccan players in major European clubs and championships.