Lamine Yamal's huge age gap with girlfriend Nicki Nicole and their Ballon d'Or plans

Ballon d'Or contenderLamine Yamal has drawn much attention for his performances in a Barcelona shirt since breaking onto the scene in 2023. However, the 18-year-old has also generated headlines for his relationship with Argentine rapper Nicki Nicole, 25.

Yamal made his relationship with the musician public earlier this year, as eyebrows were raised over their seven-year age gap.

With the Ballon d'Or ceremony set to take place on Monday evening, all eyes are on whether Nicole will accompany the Barcelona superstar, with Yamal drawingcontroversy for antics in his personal life in recent times.

While Nicole's presence has not been confirmed, rumours about the Argentine singer's attendance have gathered pace. She recently shared a picture of a bouquet of yellow and white flowers on her Instagram, reportedly gifted to her by Yamal, sparking chatter about her attendance at the iconic awards.

Despite the couple seemingly going strong, posing for a picture together on Nicole's 25th birthday celebrations, rumours of a split came just 13 days after the pair had gone public. Yamal had also been linked with a 30-year-old influencer, prior to making his relationship with Nicole official.

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In a dramatic twist, Yamal removed all traces of Nicole from his Instagram and changed his profile picture to an all-black circle, suggesting a seismic event had taken place.

However, the two seem to reignite their romance and on September 10, Nicole addressed her thoughts on her teenage beau.

Speaking at the Desigual fashion show, she said: "I am very in love, very happy and very happy. I am very happy, very happy in Barcelona, with a lot of affection from the people and I want to thank everyone."

The rapper, whose real name is Nicole Denise Cucco, also disclosed that Yamal was teaching her Catalan. She has been previously linked to Chelsea's Argentinian midfielder Enzo Fernandez in 2024 and, while garnering attention for her personal life, she is becoming a well-known name in Latin trap music and has been nominated for a Latin Grammy.

Away from Yamal's personal life, football fans are now eagerly awaiting to see who scoops the 2025 Ballon d'Or. Yamal beat Kylian Mbappe’s record to become the youngest-ever nominee for the Ballon d’Or in 2024.

However, if the Spanish star was to be victorious on Monday he would become the youngest ever recipient of the award, with Brazilian icon Ronaldo, who won it in 1997 at 21 years old, currently the youngest.

Yamal has already won two La Liga titles and the Copa del Rey with the Catalan giants. On the international stage he won the European Championships in 2024, helping to beat England in the final.

The Ballon d'Or ceremony will be held at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris. Main contenders include Paris Saint-Germain's Ousmane Dembele and Vitinha. While Yamal's team-mate at Barcelona, Raphinha, is also in the running.

However it's thought that Dembele is the strong favourite after an outstanding season under Luis Enrique in Paris. Barcelona legend Ronaldinho will present the trophy to the winner, with Yamal expecting to travel with a 20-person delegation. Whether Nicole will be in attendance with him, however, remains to be seen.

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