Frenchman Karim Benzema, captain of Al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia and the 2022 Ballon d'Or winner, has revealed his choices in the voting for the 2026 Kopa Trophy, awarded to the best young player under the age of 21.
According to French outlet "Foot Mercato", the voting details published by "France Football" magazine showed that Benzema picked Lamine Yamal first, his teammate Pau Cubarsí second and Ayyoub Bouaddi, the Lille midfielder, third. That gave the Moroccan talent a spot among Benzema's top three in the race for the award.
His ballot largely matched the final result. Yamal retained the Kopa Trophy for a third consecutive time, ahead of teammate Cubarsí in second and Frenchman Warren Zaïre-Emery in third.
The top ten also featured Lennart Karl, Yan Diomande, Ayyoub Bouaddi, Elie Junior Kroupi, Kerim Alajbegović, Ibrahim Maza and Johan Manzambi.
At 19, Yamal keeps writing his name into the history of the award for young talent. He is now the first player to win it three times running, proof of his remarkable presence on the European scene despite his age.
The Barcelona star claimed the prize after collecting the highest number of points. The vote is carried out by former Ballon d'Or winners, chief among them Lionel Messi, holder of eight.