Few if any awards in football or even all of sports have done a better job of predicting which young stars would rise to the top as the Golden Boy Award. The award for the best Under-21 player in Europe has gone to the likes of Wayne Rooney, Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero – all before their most successful seasons.
Incredibly, of the dozen winners of the award since its inception in 2003, nearly all of the winners have gone on to rank among the best players in Europe and even the entire world.
Here is a look at who won the Golden Boy award and what they’ve done since winning the prestigious title:
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2003 – Rafael van der Vaart, Ajax (Now: Real Betis)
After a breakout season in the Netherlands with 22 goals, van der Vaart won the first ever Golden Boy Award and won the Eredivisie title the following season. He has bounced around Europe and had a two-year stint with Tottenham Hotspur.
Now 32, he currently plays for Real Betis in La Liga.
2004 – Wayne Rooney, Manchester United (Now: Manchester United)
A sensational season for Everton put Wayne Rooney on the map and earned him the Golden Boy award in 2004. But Sir Alex Ferguson took quite a gamble when he broke the Premier League teenage transfer record to him after a nine-goal season.
12 years, five Premier League titles and over 230 goals later – it looks like Fergie’s gamble paid off.
2005 – Lionel Messi, Barcelona (Now: Barcelona)
Arguably the best footballer in the entire world, Messi has captured nearly every possible award, accolade and competition for Barcelona – but the Golden Boy Award was among his first serious individual prizes.
2006 – Cesc Fabregas, Arsenal (Now: Chelsea)
A key player in Arsenal’s narrow Champions League loss to Barcelona in the 2005-06 season, Fabregas would go on to score 15 goals the 2009-10 season en route to Team of the Year honors.
2007 – Sergio Aguero, Atletico Madrid (Now: Manchester City)
With at least 20 total goals in six of his last eight years of football, it’s safe to say that the voters got it right with Aguero.
2008 – Anderson, Manchester United (Now: Internacional)
Anderson was one of the brightest young players in one of the best teams in English association football history – the 2008 Manchester United team. Unfortunately, in the years after he won the award, he never made more than 20 league appearances in a single season and left the club having never truly realised his potential.
2009 – Alexandre Pato, AC Milan (Now: Sao Paulo)
After a breakout 2008-09 season with 15 goals, Pato led Milan to the Serie A title in the 2010-11 season while scoring another 14. A brief stint with Corinthians led to a loan spell in Sao Paulo. At the time of writing, various outfits are reporting that the Brazilian striker may be on his way to Liverpool.
2010 – Mario Balotelli, Manchester City (Now: Liverpool/AC Milan)
Balotelli was a key member of three straight Serie A title wins with Inter Milan prior to his big move to Man City.
He would win the FA Cup in his first year and the Premier League in his second year before a move to AC Milan, followed by a forgettable stint with Liverpool.
2011 – Mario Gotze, Borussia Dortmund (Now: Bayern Munich)
Arguably the best player developed by Jurgen Klopp, Gotze has won the Bundesliga title in four of his last five seasons between Dortmund and Bayern Munich. He was also a member of Germany’s 2014 FIFA World Cup winning squad, scoring the winning goal in the final.
2012 – Isco, Malaga (Now: Real Madrid)
After two straight years as the big fish in the small pond at Malaga, Real Madrid were more than happy to pay a premium to bring him into the fold. He has made over 50 appearances in all competitions in each of his last two seasons.
2013 – Paul Pogba, Juventus (Now: Juventus)
A teenage Pogba signed with Juventus and has won three straight Serie A titles his move. His key goal against Lazio led to a Supercoppa win and the Golden Boy award.
His dominance as a midfielder has garnered so much attention that the biggest clubs in Europe have consistently made offers to Juventus to shatter the world transfer record for his contract.
2014 – Raheem Sterling, Liverpool (Now: Manchester City)
The first Englishman to win the award since Wayne Rooney, Sterling forced his way out of Liverpool after a breakout 2014 season.
Man City signed him for over £45 million in the summer – the largest Premier League fee ever for an English player. But after the way he’s played for the Citizens this season, £45 million seems like it may have been a bargain.