The Kopa Trophy will be handed out during October's Ballon d'Or ceremony
Jude Bellingham won the Kopa Trophy in 2023(Image credit: FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)
It's coming up – so what exactly is the Kopa Trophy? The nominations for this year's Ballon d'Or were confirmed last week as the planet's best players get set for an awards bash that will see football's biggest individual prize handed out.
Sir Stanley Matthews was the very first of a long list of illustrious winners in 1956, while Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi dominated the event in recent years – although a new winner is guaranteed this year, as neither of the two 2000s icons have been nominated for the first time since 2003.
As the favourites start to emerge, it's not just the Ballon d'Or that will be dished out at during the glittering awards do at the end of October. Here's a look at one of the other awards that will be handed out.
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What is the Kopa Trophy?
The Kopa Trophy is named after French legend, Raymond Kopa (Image credit: PA)
The Kopa Trophy is an award that is handed out to the best player under the age of 21 and was first awarded in 2018, when Kylian Mbappe won the prize.
The jury tasked with deciding the winner consists of former Ballon d'Or winners and is open to players from across the world, differentiating it from the Golden Boy award, which is for European-based players only.
The gong is named after former France footballer Raymond Kopa, who won the 1958 Ballon 'Or and the other previous winners include Barcelona duo Gavi and Pedi, Matthijs de Light and Jude Bellingham, who won it last year, when he pipped Jamal Musiala and Pedri to the award.
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For more than a decade Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor, with stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others. He is the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team.
