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Soccer Stars' Single Names: A Global Puzzle
15 Jul
Summary
- Many players in the 2026 World Cup use only one name.
- Spanish and Portuguese naming conventions explain single names.
- Lamine Yamal has a unique full name due to parentage and gifts.
The 2026 World Cup features 1,248 players, with 21 notably using just one name. Brazil leads with ten such players, followed by Cape Verde with four, and Spain with three: Rodri, Pedri, and Gavi.
Spanish naming customs typically involve two surnames: the father's first, followed by the mother's. For example, Marc Cucurella's full name is Marc Cucurella Saseta. However, many Spanish players, like Rodri (Rodrigo Hernández Cascante), use a shortened version or nickname. Pedri (Pedro González López) and Gavi (Pablo Martín Páez Gavira) also adopted single names due to team situations.
Portuguese naming rules are more adaptable, allowing multiple surnames. This flexibility likely explains why Brazilian stars like Endrick Felipe Moreira de Sousa Pessoa are known simply as Endrick, and why Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima became globally recognized as Ronaldo.
An outlier is Lamine Yamal. His full name, Lamine Yamal Nasraoui Ebana, reflects his Moroccan and Equatorial Guinean heritage and Catalan upbringing. Yamal is not a surname; 'Lamine' and 'Yamal' are given names honoring individuals who supported his parents.
