Meet Lamine Yamal’s parents, Sheila Ebana and Mounir Nasraoui – and his viral brother Keyne
The Spanish football star was born when his parents were teens, and the story behind his unique compound name stems from their humble past
The toddler ran out onto the pitch after Spain’s 1-0 victory against Argentina and jumped straight into his brother’s arms. Yamal later posted a bunch of heartfelt photos on his Instagram, featuring his mum and little brother celebrating on the pitch with him.
But before Yamal became Spain’s golden boy, his parents faced financial hardships while raising him. Read on to learn more about Sheila Ebana and Mounir Nasraoui, the football star’s young parents.
Sheila Ebana gave birth to Yamal at 16
Neither Mounir Nasraoui nor Sheila Ebana are originally from Spain. Nasraoui was born in Morocco, while Ebana was born in Equatorial Guinea. Nasraoui’s mother “sneaked” onto a bus from Morocco to Spain and worked hard to save enough money to eventually bring him and his sister over, Yamal told the Resonancia de Corazón podcast last September. Ebana, on the other hand, arrived in Spain as a kid with her mother.
Ebana and Nasraoui had Yamal when they were still teenagers – she was only 16 – and struggled financially. Ebana was a waitress, while Nasraoui worked blue-collar jobs, including as a building painter, to make a living.
The footballer is proud of his parents and has publicly praised their resilience in a recent interview with radio station Cadena SER. “Look, my mum had me when she was 16. 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,” Yamal said.
Who is Lamine Yamal named after?
