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Self-taught boy, 12, wins freestyle football award

Charlie Buckland
BBC News
Yvonne Taylor James with Jesse Marlet who is current world champion of freestyle football. Jesse has his arm around James, who is wearing a blue t-shirt and holding a white trophy.Yvonne Taylor
James Taylor, 12, received the Rising Star of Freestyle award at MadJam international championships in Madrid in April

A 12-year-old boy has received an international award for his freestyle football skills after teaching himself at home.

James was named rising star of freestyle at the MadJam international championships in Madrid in April - going up against competitors who had received professional training.

He took up the sport just 18 months ago and has managed to break two Guinness World records within that time.

His mum, Yvonne Taylor, said he trained every day and watched YouTube videos as a source of inspiration, describing his self-motivation as "really impressive".

However, it came at a price during his initial practice sessions - with a number of damaged ornaments from balls being kicked around the home in Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan.

"After smashing a few things, she might have got a bit annoyed but she never really told me to stop," James told BBC Radio Wales' Breakfast.

"We've learned from that," his mum added.

"There are no more breakables in the house."

James was one of the youngest involved at the competition, but went head to head with international players.

Yvonne described the stage as his happy place and said he loved it while "he keeps pushing boundaries".

"Typically he watches videos and copies them, finds new moves online and thinks of new moves himself," she added.

James has always enjoyed watching skilful players, such as the likes of Argentine great Diego Maradona, but Yvonne said the family were not initially aware freestyle was a sport itself.

"There is no training available here," said Yvonne, adding that freestyle is typically popular in , Spain and the Netherlands.

Yvonne Taylor James doing a handstand with a football between his knees. A of judges sit on a table behind him, with a black curtain behind them which says Mad Jam inside a football graphic. Yvonne Taylor
James taught himself the freestyle moves by training everyday and watching videos online

But she said some great freestylers were from Wales, including 25-time Guinness World Record holder Ash Randall from Cardiff and "keepy-uppy king" Abbas Farid from Newport.

In 2023, James was invited to a Cardiff City v Norwich City match to complete a Guinness World Record for the most shoulder rolls in a minute - completing 77 and breaking the previous record by eight.

He is due to compete in more events this year, including Amsterdam, and James said he also wanted "to break more Guinness World Records".