Winner of the Golden Boy award has been announced
Jude Bellingham, the 21st recipient of the prestigious Golden Boy award, has been named the best young football talent in Europe for the year 2023 [1][5]. The midfielder, who plays for Real Madrid and the England national team, has made a stunning start to his career, earning multiple accolades in the 2023-24 season.
Bellingham joined Real Madrid from Borussia Dortmund last summer for a transfer fee starting at €103 million, potentially rising to about €134 million due to add-ons [5]. His outstanding performance in La Liga and the Champions League has seen him score 13 goals and provide 3 assists in just 14 games.
The Englishman's 2023-24 season has been nothing short of exceptional. He was named La Liga Player of the Season, UEFA Champions League Young Player of the Season, Bundesliga Player of the Season (2022-23), and several Team of the Season honors across major competitions [5].
In addition to these accolades, Bellingham was also recognized by ESPN as the number one central midfielder for the 2022-23 season and received various awards like the Globe Soccer Emerging Player of the Year 2023 and the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year 2024 [5].
Bellingham follows in the footsteps of Wayne Rooney (2004) and Raheem Sterling (2014) as the third Englishman to win the Golden Boy award [1]. With this win, England now shares second place with France for the most Golden Boy awards, with Spain leading the way with four wins.
The nominees for the 2023 Golden Boy award included several promising young talents such as Jamal Musiala (Bayern), Havertz Simons (RB Leipzig), Antonio Silva (Benfica), Alex Balde (Barcelona), Florian Wirtz (Bayer), Benjamin Šeško (RB Leipzig), Giorgio Scalvini (Atalanta), Rasmus Hjulmand (Manchester United), Levi Colwill (Chelsea), Ibrahima Bakayoko (PSV), Miloš Kerkez (Bournemouth), Arthur Vermeeren (Antwerp), Evan Ferguson (Brighton), Luca Gurna-Duart (Red Bull Salzburg), Warren Zaïre-Emery (PSG), Usman Dembélé (Sporting), Arnau Martínez (Girona), Mats Tel (Bayern), and Andy Diouf (Lens) [2].
With the 2023 Golden Boy award, Bellingham joins the ranks of other famous recipients like Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, and Pedri [2]. Unfortunately, a full comprehensive list of all Golden Boy award winners up to 2023 could not be found in the search results. For a detailed list or statistics on all winners, you might need to check specialized football databases or the official Golden Boy award announcements.
[1] [https://www.goal.com/en-us/news/jude-bellingham-becomes-third-england-player-to-win-golden-boy-award/1hbq3w0lzr5511012b5z552vq] [2] [https://www.theguardian.com/football/2023/dec/14/jude-bellingham-wins-2023-golden-boy-award-for-best-young-player-in-europe] [3] [https://www.espn.com/football/story/_/id/34897549/jude-bellingham-wins-2023-golden-boy-award] [4] [https://www.marca.com/en/football/real-madrid/2023/12/14/61a899160270721133.html] [5] [https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/62136879]
Jude Bellingham, the lauded Golden Boy award winner, excelled in multiple European leagues during the 2023-24 season, being named La Liga Player of the Season and UEFA Champions League Young Player of the Season. His exceptional performances in Laliga, particularly with Real Madrid, resulted in him scoring 13 goals and providing 3 assists in just 14 games.
