⭐ MODEL FAVAGE 18
Lamine Yamal
Spain · FC Barcelona
Pre-tournament favourite. Reigning Kopa Trophy winner. Spain's primary attacking outlet from the right.
PREMIER LEAGUE 26/27
31DAYS TO KICK-OFF
The World Cup is done. The new season is already called — all 380 matches, the final table, the fantasy edge.
BEST YOUNG PLAYER · TSG DECISION · TOURNAMENT COMPLETE
Winner: Pau CubarsíSpain · world championsConfirmed by FIFA
Best Young Player: Pau Cubarsí
Pau Cubarsí of Spain won the 2026 Best Young Player award. At 19 the Barcelona centre-back anchored the champions' defence — only the second teenager to win it after Mbappé in 2018, and the first defender in over forty years.
QUICK ANSWER
Who won the World Cup 2026 Best Young Player award?
Pau Cubarsí (Spain) won the 2026 World Cup Best Young Player award, decided by FIFA's Technical Study Group. The 19-year-old Barcelona centre-back anchored the defence of the champions, who beat Argentina 1-0 after extra time in the final on 19 July 2026. He is only the second teenager to win the award after Kylian Mbappé in 2018, and the first defender to take it in more than forty years. Tournament wrap at /tournament-review.
Updated 2 days ago
HOW THE MODEL CALLED IT · ONSIDE AI
Best Young Player probability board
Endrick
Brazil
13.2%
0 G+A · 5.1 m. left
Lamine Yamal
Spain
15.1%
0 G+A · 5.4 m. left
Estêvão
Brazil
12.0%
0 G+A · 5.1 m. left
OUTSIDE THE PODIUM · NEXT 7
- 4Désiré DouéFrance · 0 G+A · 20 age11.5%
- 5Pau CubarsíSpain · 0 G+A · 18 age10.4%
- 6Warren Zaïre-EmeryFrance · 0 G+A · 20 age9.5%
- 7Lautaro HenriqueArgentina · 0 G+A · 20 age8.5%
- 8Kobbie MainooEngland · 0 G+A · 21 age7.8%
- 9Florian WirtzGermany · 0 G+A · 22 age6.3%
- 10João NevesPortugal · 0 G+A · 21 age5.6%
Probabilities derive from current stats × team's expected remaining matches via the 10,000-run Monte Carlo simulator, normalised across the field. Methodology →
PRE-TOURNAMENT SHORTLIST · TOP 6
The six to watch
Six U-21 players the Onside model and scouts agree are in genuine contention. Updated live after MD1.
AGE 19
Endrick
Brazil · Real Madrid
Brazil's rotation striker. Likely impact-sub minutes from MD1 with a starting role unlocked by Group C qualification.
AGE 20
Désiré Doué
France · Paris Saint-Germain
France's wide-creator under-23. PSG form has been elite; nationally he'll fight Dembélé / Coman for wing minutes.
AGE 20
Warren Zaïre-Emery
France · Paris Saint-Germain
Box-to-box midfielder. Deschamps trusts him; expect 70+ min in every France group match.
AGE 19
Estêvão
Brazil · Chelsea
Brazil's emerging right-winger. Chelsea move places him on the global radar; squad rotation in Group C is unsettled.
AGE 19
Pau Cubarsí
Spain · FC Barcelona
Centre-back, locked-in starter for Spain. The model's sleeper pick — defenders rarely win this award but Yashin-style runs happen.
Best Young Player — every winner since 2006
The award has gone to a forward or midfielder in every edition. Defenders are statistically underweighted — a model edge if a Pau Cubarsí or William Pacho runs the tournament.
2022Enzo FernándezArgentina · age 21
2018Kylian MbappéFrance · age 19
2014Paul PogbaFrance · age 21
2010Thomas MüllerGermany · age 20
2006Lukas PodolskiGermany · age 21
WC MATCHDAY BRIEF · ONE LIST, TWO SEASONS
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More from World Cup 2026
WC MATCHDAY BRIEF · ONE LIST, TWO SEASONS
Get the World Cup brief in your inbox — plus early FPL 2026/27 picks
Match-by-match predictions, captain picks for World Cup Fantasy, likely scorers, and the first FPL 2026/27 differentials to watch. Same engine that powers our Premier League tools, pointed at the world's biggest pre-season.
Weekly digest
Captain picks, transfer tips & differentials — every week.
One email per gameweek. Unsubscribe any time.
SAME ENGINE · POINTED AT FPL
Tracking the World Cup? Use the same engine for FPL 2026/27.
v5 engine · 51k+ OOS predictions · MAE 0.86. Captain picks, squad optimiser, AI Coach, set-piece intel — the production Premier League tools.