Spain’s teenage star promised future glory in a letter to fans the day after Barcelona’s Champions League exit.
Published on 15 April 2026
Lamine Yamal has reiterated his promise to win the UEFA Champions League (UCL) with Barcelona.
A day after the team was eliminated by Atletico Madrid in the quarter-finals, 18-year-old Yamal said on Wednesday that he will not give up and will keep his promise to capture the trophy with the Catalan club.
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“We are Barça and we will return to where we belong,” Yamal said in a post on Instagram. “My parents taught me that a man’s word should always be kept… We will bring him to Barcelona.”
Barcelona beat Atletico 2-1 on Tuesday, but lost the first leg 2-0 at home last week. The Catalan club was attempting to return to the semi-finals for the second consecutive season. It won the last of its five Champions League trophies in 2015 with Lionel Messi at the top of his game.
“We put everything we had into it but it wasn’t enough,” Yamal posted. “This is just part of the road. To get to the top you have to climb, and we know it won’t be easy, nor will they make it easy for us. But giving up is not an option.
“We have a lot of reasons to be excited, and we’re moving forward with everything we do. Every mistake is a lesson, and there’s no doubt that we’ll learn from every one of them.”
Yamal, who scored a goal for Barcelona on Tuesday, had similar words after the team’s defeat to Inter Milan in the 2025 semi-finals, saying he “will not stop” until he “fulfills his promise” to win the Champions League with the club.
On Wednesday morning Yamal was still using on his Instagram profile a photo of LeBron James holding the NBA trophy in 2016 after the Cleveland Cavaliers overcame a 3-1 loss against the Golden State Warriors.
He said before the match against Atlético that James was an inspiration for Barcelona’s comeback attempt. His team needed one more goal on Tuesday to take the game to extra time.
In La Liga, Barcelona has a nine-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid after 31 rounds and its next match is against Celta Vigo next week.
Barcelona complained loudly about the refereeing in both legs against Atletico, and forward Rafinha could face punishment after saying on Tuesday that his team had been “robbed”.
Barca president-elect Joan Laporta said on Wednesday the refereeing was “shameful” and “unacceptable” and said the club planned to lodge a formal complaint with UEFA.
“The refereeing was disrespectful, both on the field and in the VAR booth,” he told Spanish media. “What they did to us is unbearable. In the first leg, they did not give us a clear penalty and sent one of our players off for a yellow card offence. The referee’s decision hurt us very much.”
Barcelona had already complained to UEFA about a possible penalty awarded to their side in the first leg.
Pau Cubarci was sent off in the first half of the opening game, and Eric García was shown a red card in the second half on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said his young team will learn from their latest setback.
“We have a young team and they will improve,” the German said after the game.
“Every day we have to learn more, we have to get better and that’s what we have to do.”
