Millions around the globe will watch Lamine Yamal and Spain play France in the World Cup semi-finals on Tuesday.
Among that number might be two figures who played an important part in the Barcelona superstar’s story — even if their exact role remains something of a mystery to the public.
Like most Spanish people, Yamal, who turned 19 on Monday, has two surnames — one inherited from his father, another from his mother. These are Nasraoui and Ebana.
However, like many Spanish footballers — including his former Barca coach Xavi and Barca team-mate Pedri — Spain’s No 19 goes by his first name professionally.
In this case, that first name has two parts, similar to Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique, another ex-Barca figure.
For both Spain and Barcelona, the name on the back of Yamal’s shirt reads: Lamine Yamal. On his passport and national ID card, his full name reads: Lamine Yamal Nasraoui Ebana.
Yamal and Spain play France on Tuesday in the first World Cup semi-final (Luke Hales/Getty Images)
Lamine is a popular name in Arabic, which can be translated as honest or trustworthy — it derives from Al Amin, which is also an honorary title once given to the prophet Muhammad.
Yamal is a variant of the widely used Arabic name Jamal — which can be translated as beauty, grace or charm. Most who have seen him play football would likely agree that they are fitting names.
Both names would also not be uncommon for children born in July 2007 to immigrants to Catalonia. Yamal’s father Mounir Nasraoui was born in Morocco, while his mother Sheila Ebana was born in Equatorial Guinea.
However, the twist in this story, widely reported in Spanish media, is that both names were chosen by this particular baby’s parents out of gratitude to two friends.
Ebana was 16 when their child was born, and she and Nasraoui would not have been the first (or the last) new parents to need financial assistance from those around them to deal with changed circumstances and extra responsibilities.
In this story, among those to really step up when they were required were two male family friends. One called Lamine, the other Yamal.
Out of appreciation for such support, the new parents decided to name their baby Lamine Yamal Nasraoui Ebana.
Yamal pictured with his father, mother and little half-brother Keyne at the 2024 Ballon d’Or awards (Franck Fife/AFP via Getty Images)
A lot has happened to that little boy since, and it wasn’t just being photographed with Lionel Messi at five months old.
Aged 12, he left his home farther up the Catalan coast to join Barcelona’s La Masia academy. He has won La Liga titles with Barca and the 2024 European Championship with Spain. His Barca contract, agreed in 2025, is worth up to €40million (£33.5m; $45.3m) a year before tax, while he also has endorsement deals with global brands such as Adidas, American Eagle, Visa, Coca-Cola and Beats by Dre.
Along the way, Yamal has often spoken about how difficult his early years were, especially for his parents, and other family and friends in the majority-immigrant Rocafonda neighbourhood of Catalan city Mataro, which has one of the highest poverty rates in Spain.
“Look, my mum had me when she was 16,” Yamal said in an interview with Spanish radio station Cadena SER earlier in July. “My dad also had to go out and look for a life, sometimes picking up stuff in the streets to try to come back home with food for us. To me, this is real pressure, not what I have.”
His trademark ‘304’ goal celebration proudly recalls the final three digits of Rocafonda’s postcode, while in many media interviews he has recalled the sacrifices made by his parents to help him pursue his football.
Yet, the identities of Lamine and Yamal, the friends who helped the new parents, have never been made public.
The footballer himself has never confirmed information about them, nor have Nasraoui and Ebana given any details about the exact relationships involved, or the actual help that was given.
The reasons neither of the apparent mystery benefactors has ever come forward are unknown. Maybe they enjoy their anonymity. Perhaps they do not want to draw attention away from the player. Possibly they prefer not to revisit the circumstances of almost two decades ago.
But if they are watching Tuesday night’s huge game, they can surely be proud of the generosity they showed to two young first-time parents, 19 years ago.
