Lamine Yamal, who was still just 17 when the 2026 World Cup kicked off, is one of the bona fide superstars of this summer’s event in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The Barcelona attacker turned 18 just two days before Spain, many people’s favourites to win the World Cup, began their campaign with a 0-0 draw against Cape Verde. They were far more convincing against Saudi Arabia the following week, with Yamal scoring the opener in a 4-0 win.
Yamal had another glittering season domestically too, registering 24 goals and 18 assists across 45 appearances. It is a quite remarkable return for one so young.
The Catalan’s powers on the pitch, as well as his commercial appeal off it, were reflected in the new contract he signed at the outset of 2025-26.
His six-year deal is worth around $360,000 per week before tax. That is just shy of $19m annually.
If he continues his trajectory, he can expect to become a billionaire through his salary alone over the course of his playing career. And that is before his various endorsements with the likes of Adidas, American Eagle and Coca-Cola.
He is represented in talks with Barcelona and commercial partners by Gestifute, the Portuguese firm founded by super-agent Jorge Mendes.
And at the World Cup, Gestifute are representing around $1.3bn worth of talent, according to data from Transfermrkt.
Yamal, at just shy of $230m, is by far the most valuable, followed by Paris Saint-Germain and Portugal teammates Vitinha and Joao Neves, who are both valued at about $160m.
The $1.3bn goldmine of talent Gestifute are representing at this summer’s tournament is almost double the equivalent figure at the next-best agency.
It is also a record for a single agency at a World Cup.
If Yamal becomes a world champion in July as well as European one, the number could swell even more.
Spain conclude their group stage swing against Uruguay on Saturday in Mexico at the Guadalajara Stadium.
