Lamine Yamal: Ready For Barcelona And Spain, Too Young For Soccer Game EA Sports FC 24

Forbes Business SportsMoney Lamine Yamal: Ready For Barcelona And Spain, Too Young For Soccer Game EA Sports FC 24 Henry Flynn Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. I write about Spanish soccer’s big clubs. Following Oct 3, 2023, 09:22pm EDT | Press play to listen to this article! Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin With eight appearances, playing against Spain’s elite teams is no longer a novelty for Yamal.

Getty Images Barcelona may have stuck a €1 billion ($1. 1 billion) release clause on another precious young player. All the while, despite appearances for his club and Spain, wide forward Lamine Yamal is not old enough to feature on the new popular soccer video game EA Sports FC 24.

16-year-old Yamal has impressed since being fast-tracked to Barcelona’s first-team squad before the season, with his natural ease on the ball clear for all to see. But fans hoping to make the hotshot part of their gaming masterplans will have to wait until he turns 17 next July. The title’s rules dictate no players under 17 can feature.

Had the 17-year-old Endrick been allowed to join rival Real Madrid from Brazilian side Palmeiras a year ago, he wouldn’t have been up for selection under the up-to-date criteria. Outside the Spanish bubble, Luka Vuškovic, the teenager signing for Tottenham Hotspur in 2025, does not appear on the Croatian club Hadjuk Split’s roster. Most exciting prospects are available.

Ascending the Barcelona academy ranks has smoothened Yamal’s formal transition to Xavi’s first team. At 15 years, nine months and 16 days, he became the youngest to play in the Spanish top tier, which, incidentally, changed its licensed name to LALIGA EA SPORTS in the offseason. Although he is waiting for a maiden goal in La Liga, he became Spain’s youngest player and scorer during a comfortable 7-1 rout against Georgia in Eur0 2024 qualifying.

“It’s a source of pride when I see kids coming through like me at my age, and a dream for anyone to be able to make it,” Yamal—who has a Moroccan father and an Equatoguinean mother—told club media after his renewal until 2026, the latest he can legally stay for now. His climb into the senior reckoning has been rapid, ultimately too swift for developer Electronic Arts (EA). MORE FOR YOU Grimes Reportedly Files In Cour Elon Musk Over Parental Rights To Child The 2023 Forbes 400 List Of Richest Americans Facts And Figures 5 Categories Of Borrowers Could Get Student Loan Forgiveness Under New Biden Plan Professionals in La Liga and across Europe revel at discovering their official game ratings each .

. . [+] year.

Getty Images While there is natural curiosity around how the first FC game compares to its FIFA predecessors, becoming a bestseller would be a stretch, especially given the unparalleled numbers FIFA 18 has racked up over the last five years—reportedly selling over 26. 4 million units. EA and FIFA ended their 30-year tie before the fresh release, hence a different trademark.

That was due to a contractual disagreement over how much EA should pay FIFA to continue using its likeness. FIFA games were, and the upcoming editions presumably will be, lucrative for EA—which decided to strike out alone rather than meet the soccer organization’s demands—supposedly pushed up to more than €955 million ($1 billion) every four years, according to The New York Times in 2021. The product already brings in high revenue from physical purchases and in-game transactions.

Yamal may not be ready to star. But how much the soccer landscape can change in such little time is staggering. After a tight 1-0 home win for Barcelona against Sevilla in September, in which Yamal’s header forced a decisive own goal by ex-Real Madrid stalwart Sergio Ramos, footage emerged showing Ramos walking a nine-year-old Yamal out onto the field before a Clásico fixture in 2016.

Seven campaigns on, most users are arguably more keen to see what he can bring to the game than Spain icon Ramos. Despite having no worries over the stars set to popularize the game longer-term, not having a player like Yamal is a slight setback, given he’s already a big deal in Spanish soccer and has drawn bold forecasts, namely that he can be the next sensation in the forward line after the great Lionel Messi. More importantly, omitting players like him protects the upcoming generation.

In becoming the most recent Blaugrana prospect to hold the €1 billion ($1. 1 billion) label, Yamal joins teammates Ronald Araújo, Jules Koundé, Alejandro Balde, Pedri, Gavi, Raphinha, Ferran Torres, loanee Ansu Fati and youth acquisition Noah Darvich with the same tag. As he cuts his teeth in La Liga and the Champions League, Yamal will have more chances to prove himself this breakthrough season—and is among the storylines to follow in the opening Clásico with Real Madrid on October 28.

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