Lamine Yamal’s Parents: Inside Sheila Ebana and Mounir Nasraoui’s Story After Spain’s World Cup Title

Lamine Yamal’s own tribute to his mother and younger brother, delivered in a Cadena SER interview after Spain won the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Yamal’s parents are Mounir Nasraoui, originally from Larache in northern Morocco, and Sheila Ebana, from Bata, Equatorial Guinea. They had their son on July 13, 2007, near Barcelona, when Ebana was 16, and separated a few years later, though both have stayed involved in his life.

Yamal, now 19, helped Spain beat Argentina 1-0 in extra time on July 19 to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, becoming one of the youngest players ever to lift the trophy. His father was not at the final in New Jersey. Nasraoui has said he lives with epilepsy and chose not to travel because of the physical stress the trip could cause him.

A Family Built on Migration and Hard Work

Nasraoui’s mother, Fátima, made the journey from Morocco to Spain alone and without documentation, traveling through Algeciras and Granada before settling in Mataró, in the Rocafonda neighborhood. She worked multiple jobs to save enough money to bring her children over. Nasraoui arrived in Spain as a child, following that same path his mother had carved out years earlier.

Ebana came to Catalonia from Equatorial Guinea as a child with her own mother. She and Nasraoui met in Barcelona while both were living in a residence for young parents. Yamal has said his mother worked as a waitress and at a McDonald’s location near Mataró while raising him largely on her own after the separation, which happened when he was about three years old. Yamal has discussed this dual heritage and its influence on his identity in an extended interview about his Moroccan and Guinean roots.

Fátima still lives in Rocafonda, in a home Yamal purchased for her with his football earnings. She has chosen to remain in the neighborhood rather than move somewhere wealthier, according to Yamal’s own account in interviews given after the World Cup final.

Sheila Ebana’s Role in Yamal’s Upbringing

Ebana raised Yamal for much of his childhood while working long hours. Yamal has said she would rush home to spend even a few minutes with him before he went to sleep. He has repeatedly called her his biggest source of pride, saying in a Cadena SER interview reported on July 30 that he feels “deeply moved” seeing her live the life she always wanted.

Ebana has since remarried and had a son, Keyne, born in September 2022. She also has a large public following, built partly around her visibility at Yamal’s matches. During the 2026 World Cup, she traveled to the United States with Keyne, who became a breakout figure in his own right after running onto the field to celebrate with his brother following the final.

Yamal has called Keyne “like my own son” and said watching him grow up in more comfortable circumstances than Yamal’s own childhood is one of his greatest sources of happiness. He has described his early home as one where the kitchen and bedroom occupied the same small space, a detail he has repeated in multiple interviews to illustrate how far his family has come.

Mounir Nasraoui’s Health, Absence From the Final, and Personal Life

Nasraoui has remained one of the most visible members of Yamal’s family, frequently appearing at matches and speaking to Spanish media. He was not present for the World Cup final. In interviews with Spanish broadcasters, he explained that he has epilepsy, takes daily medication, and judged the emotional intensity and travel demands of the trip too risky. He said he preferred to watch from home rather than risk a medical episode.

Reports have also referenced a family bereavement around the same period, though the family has not publicly confirmed details connecting that loss to the decision to skip the final. Nasraoui’s own explanation, given directly to Spanish television, remains the most clearly sourced account of why he stayed home.

Nasraoui was the victim of a serious attack in August 2024, when he was stabbed multiple times in a parking area in Rocafonda. A forensic doctor at Can Ruti Hospital in Badalona described his wounds as life-threatening. He recovered after several days of hospital treatment. In the weeks after the attack, his mother, Fátima, told Spanish media she had received threats and felt forced to consider leaving the neighborhood, though she ultimately remained.

In late October 2025, Nasraoui announced his engagement to a woman identified in reports as Khristina, who is significantly younger than him. The announcement drew wide attention in Spanish and international media because of the age gap between them. Nasraoui also has a younger daughter, Baraa, from a relationship with his current partner. Unlike Keyne, Baraa has stayed out of public view, and little has been reported about her beyond her father’s occasional social media posts.

What Yamal Has Said About His Family

Yamal has spoken about his parents’ hardships in several interviews over the past year, most notably on the “Resonancia de Corazón” podcast and in his July 30 remarks to Cadena SER. He has said his mother having him at 16 represents “real pressure,” contrasting it with the pressure he faces as a professional athlete. He has also credited his father with working difficult jobs, including collecting items in the street, to provide for the family in its early years.

His full name, Lamine Yamal Nasraoui Ebana, reflects Spanish naming convention, combining his father’s and mother’s family names. Reports have said the first names honor two people who helped the family during a period of financial hardship, though their identities have not been made public.

Family Snapshot

The broader facts of Yamal’s family story, his parents’ migration backgrounds, their separation, and their early financial struggles, have remained consistent across his own public statements over the past year. What has changed since Spain’s World Cup win is the tone: Yamal has shifted from describing hardship to expressing gratitude, repeatedly pointing to his mother’s stability and his brother’s easier childhood as measures of his own success.

Related Reading: [Cathy Engelbert Faces WNBA’s Biggest Test Over Trans Debate]