Spanish forward Lamine Yamal celebrated Spain's 1-0 victory over Argentina in the World Cup final alongside his three-year-old half-brother Keyne at MetLife Stadium.
Dressed in a replica Spain jersey with Yamal's No. 19 and his own first name emblazoned on the back, Keyne darted onto the pitch in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The 19-year-old Barcelona star accepted a hug from his younger brother, lifted him into the air, and placed a red Lamine baseball hat on the toddler's head.
Keyne also tried on a cap shared by a New Jersey State Trooper before returning it to the officer. During pre-game warmups, Keyne impressed onlookers by executing fancy footwork and scoring a goal on Yamal's teammate Nico Williams.
Later on the pitch, Keyne danced near a giant replica of the World Cup trophy and bumped fists with Yamal. Yamal and his mother Sheila Ebana put the World Cup trophy into Keyne's arms as the toddler took a quick breather before getting his second wind.
Tournament sensation and stadium antics
Keyne's appearances on stadium scoreboards and in wire photos made him a breakout star throughout the tournament. Spanish publication Hola! reported earlier this month, "This time around, the biggest sensation of the competition isn't an athlete, the goals, or even the trophy itself," adding, "It's Keyne, Lamine Yamal's three-year-old brother, who's taking the tournament by storm with his hilarious moments."
Other media outlets dubbed the toddler "the star of the 2026 World Cup," "Spain's superstar in the stands" and "the most beloved personality of the tournament." His popularity surged after Spain's quarter-final victory over Belgium, when television cameras cut to him waving and smiling from the stands.
Down on the pitch, Yamal laughed after spotting Keyne sticking out his tongue on the giant screens. Speaking to journalists after the match, Yamal revealed his brother had called him from their mother's phone during physio the day before. "I was at physio and he called me, using my mum's phone, and told me that he was going to stick his tongue out tomorrow," Yamal explained. "So that's why when I saw him on the screen, it really made me laugh."
Keyne also used a piece of the goal's net to entertain a state trooper on Sunday. Yamal spoke about their close bond after being named player of the match in Spain's round-of-32 victory last Thursday. "I'm moved when I see my little brother this happy, as well as seeing my mum and friends living the life they always dreamed of," Yamal said. "My little brother means everything to me. I am in love with him; it feels like he is my son."
Family bond and upbringing
Keyne was born in September 2022 to Yamal's mother, Sheila Ebana. Although Yamal and Keyne do not share the same father, Yamal regularly shares videos of them doing TikTok dances together and playing football on the pitch during Barcelona's La Liga title celebrations last season.
Footage online shows Keyne singing the Barcelona anthem at home, cheering his brother's name, and joking around with Barcelona mascot Cat. Keyne has also spent time with Nico Williams after a La Liga match between Barcelona and Athletic Club, and was filmed riding a Mercedes electric kids car with Yamal and Ebana.
During a tour of his former Barcelona flat at the end of last year, Yamal showed viewers a statuette depicting him squatting and said it was Keyne's "favourite thing in my house." The figure references the traditional Catalan caganer, typically hidden within Nativity scenes and portrayed relieving itself outside the stable.
Yamal, who brought Keyne to the Ballon d'Or ceremony, uses his 304 celebration to honour his roots in Rocafonda, a deprived neighborhood in Catalonia. "My mom had me when she was 16, now that's real pressure," he told Spanish broadcaster Cadena SER. "Then my dad had to go out and make a living, scavenging on the streets to bring food home. That's pressure. All I have to do is play and keep the Spanish fans happy."
Yamal noted on a podcast last year that he grew up in an apartment where the kitchen and bedroom were in the same place. Giving Keyne the childhood he never had makes him happiest, Yamal explained. Keyne also appears on Ebana's Instagram profile in sponsored posts, including a promotion for a sushi restaurant in Premià de Mar, near Barcelona, where she wrote, "Sunday, sushi and good company."
Historic photo with Lionel Messi
Yamal's family history includes a famous 2007 photograph featuring a 20-year-old Lionel Messi bathing Yamal when he was a baby. Yamal's parents, including his Morocco-born father Mounir Nasraoui, won a photo session with a Barcelona player through a raffle run by Catalan newspaper Sport.
In the photo shoot, Messi bathed the five-month-old Yamal and held him wrapped in a towel. On Friday, the 39-year-old Messi reflected on the image. "That picture, it was crazy," Messi said Friday. "Him as a baby, and now we are facing each other. What a crazy picture."
