With the end of summer, the XMA Europa Awards 2026 took place, the Old Continent’s counterpart to the American event. This past September 13, in fact, the best European pornstars on the international scene gathered in Amsterdam for the most anticipated ceremony in the European sector. Among the many categories in contention, one of the most interesting is Best New Performer, which rewards the actress who has recently stepped into the porn world and has proven able to stand out from her very first steps.
Here too it is worth clarifying what “European” means: the category rewards the rising pornstars who took their first steps working with the market and production companies of the continent, regardless of their country of birth. It is no coincidence that among the best rising pornstars of 2026 there are performers who have arrived from all over the world, from Turkey to Chile.
In this list, performers never nominated before sit alongside actresses who have already won significant recognition, like the British Yasmina Khan, named best newcomer at the PornHub Awards 2026.
Below we analyze the 15 rising European pornstars selected by the XMA Europa Awards 2026 for the Best New Performer category, going through, for each of them, nominations, nominated scenes and awards won:
- Anna Bella
- Amber Bloom
- Angelica Heaven
- Norah Juliette
- Yasmina Khan
- Candy Layla
- Lexy Montana
- Nicole Nixon
- Vixi Rafi
- Audrey Reid
- Venus Rey
- Sofia Rivers
- Layla Scarlett
- Gatita Veve
- Polly Yangs
Anna Bella
Anna Bella (Istanbul, Turkey – October 3, 2006) is among the very latest arrivals in this selection, with a debut dating to 2025. Despite her recent start, she has already collaborated with production companies such as Vixen and shot more complex scenes, like an anal scene for Woodman Casting. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026, besides the Best New Performer nomination, she competed for Best Sex Scene – All-Sex with Anna Bella Part Three (Immoral Live, with Matt Bird and Dan Leal).
Amber Bloom
Amber Bloom (Warsaw, Poland – May 21, 1999) made her debut between the end of 2024 and 2025, starting out with Immoral Productions. Within a few months she had already worked with Bang Bros, taking on anal scenes as well. Her early career bears the mark of a weighty collaboration, the one with the multi-award-winning Angela White. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026 she earned the sole Best New Performer nomination.
Angelica Heaven
Angelica Heaven (Russia – February 6, 2005) has been active since 2024 and oriented herself toward hardcore from the very start, with group scenes and double penetration shot for labels such as Private and Nympho. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026 she received the Best New Performer nomination, with no other personal nominations.
Norah Juliette
Norah Juliette (Queensland, Australia – October 18, 1997), also known by the stage name Minni Joy, has been active since 2023 and has built her career with top-tier international studios such as Tushy and Reality Kings, as well as collaborating with performers of the caliber of Clemence Audiard and Christian Clay. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026, besides the Best New Performer nomination, she received a nomination for Rising Streamer (a category later won by Luna Doll).
Yasmina Khan
Yasmina Khan (Crawley, England – March 27, 1997) is a pornstar of Bengali descent, whom we have already told you about in the article dedicated to the 10 British pornstars you need to know. Fresh off the best newcomer title at the PornHub Awards 2026, at the XMAs she collected, besides the category nomination, two more individual nominations and one as a duo: Best Sex Scene – Virtual Reality (thanks to Catherine Knight Birthday Orgy), Female Creator of the Year and Creator Duo of the Year. The latter was won by Yasmina Khan together with her husband Brady Bud.
Candy Layla
Candy Layla (Ukraine – June 18, 2004) is a name already familiar to our readers: in June 2026 she was a guest on the PRN Podcast, our Italian-language podcast, for an interview in which she opened up completely, from her past among the Jehovah’s Witnesses to her entry into the adult industry. After opening OnlyFans at the end of 2024 to immediate success, she shot her first professional scene with Rocco Siffredi in November 2025, later adding collaborations with companies such as Bang Bros and Brazzers and work in clubs with the Moastar agency.
At this edition of the XMA Europa Awards she earned the Best New Performer nomination, which could be only the first of a long series.
Lexy Montana
Lexy Montana (Kyiv, Ukraine – March 6, 2001) debuted in November 2024 with Immoral Productions. In a short time she went on to shoot for labels such as Blacked Raw, working alongside prominent European performers like Kelly Collins and Jimmy Bud. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026 she was nominated for Best New Performer.
Nicole Nixon
Nicole Nixon (Ukraine – December 16, 2003) made her debut in 2025, starting out with Immoral Productions. Versatile and with great on-screen presence, she has already shot both B/G and G/G scenes, not shying away from group scenes either, proof of how, for her, the hardcore world is still all to conquer. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026 she earned the Best New Performer nomination.
Vixi Rafi
Vixi Rafi (Ukraine – June 22, 2006) made her debut at 18 and quickly got herself noticed working with European networks such as Nubiles and shooting VR content as well. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026, besides the Best New Performer nomination, she competed for Best Sex Scene – Vignette with Sex Adventures on a Desert Island (Private, with Marco Bull), without taking home the statuette. Among her collaborations are those with Rocco Siffredi and Britney Dutch.
Audrey Reid
At last we come to the winner: the Canadian pornstar Audrey Reid (Montreal, Canada – October 25, 1996). Her face is not new to our pages, having already appeared among the 10 Canadian pornstars you need to know. She debuted in 2024 and in a short time went on to work with companies of Brazzers’ caliber, as well as several anal scenes for Tushy and Tushy Raw. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026, besides the nominations for Best Sex Scene – Vignette, Best Sex Scene – All-Sex and Best Sex Scene – Virtual Reality, she claimed the award that matters most in this selection: Best New Performer.
Venus Rey
Venus Rey (France – October 13, 1997) moves above all in auteur porn: since 2024 she has collaborated steadily with Erika Lust, in productions made together with Martin Grey. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026, besides the Best New Performer nomination, she competed for Best Sex Scene – Vignette with Lessons From a Dominatrix (Erika Lust, with Emma C and Martin Grey), without managing to claim the statuette.
Sofia Rivers
Sofia Rivers (Kremenchuk, Poltava Oblast, Ukraine – November 28, 2002) is a pornstar with natural red hair whom we interviewed exclusively on our pages. Born and raised in Ukraine, she moved to Poland at 17 to study graphic design, then building an audience starting from OnlyFans. 2025 marked her entry into professional porn: first with HENTAIED, then with Little Caprice Dreams, for whom she shot a VR project together with Marcello Bravo.
It is precisely her tie to Little Caprice’s studio that places her among the most interesting rising European performers of this edition, where she earned the Best New Performer nomination.
Layla Scarlett
Layla Scarlett (Bologna, Italy – December 28, 1997) is an Italian performer of Moroccan origin who, before entering the industry, worked as a nurse. Her debut, as she told us on the PRN Podcast (our Italian-language podcast), came out of an encounter with Rocco Siffredi at a club in Bologna: her very first scene was a gang bang shot for the Rocco Siffredi Academy, followed by professional sets between Italy and Budapest, anal scenes and a double penetration.
She has shared the set several times with Martina Smeraldi and shot an anal scene with Francis X for Private. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026, besides the Best New Performer nomination, she was nominated for Best Sex Scene – Lesbian thanks to PL4Y Vol. 2 (Dorcel, with Milan Cheek, Arwen Diamond and Candee Licious).
Gatita Veve
Gatita Veve (Alto Hospicio, Chile – April 2, 1996) took her first steps in the industry by opening her own OnlyFans channel, then moving into mainstream porn on the advice of her colleague Maximo Garcia. At the XMA Europa Awards 2026 she also competed for Best Sex Scene – Virtual Reality, but above all she claimed Rising Creator, the only statuette she took home at this edition.
Polly Yangs
Polly Yangs (Russia – August 11, 2004) is a pornstar active since 2023 who in just a few years has put together a filmography of international scope, with appearances for Blacked (alongside Jason Luv), Vixen and, in the step-family vein, for CumSwappingSis together with Candee Licious. She has also shot several anal-themed scenes. Her path earned her a nomination at the AVN Awards 2026 as Best New International Starlet, on top of the Best New Performer nomination at the XMA Europa Awards 2026.
The 15 best rising European pornstars of 2026 according to XMA represent the winds of change sweeping through the sector: names more or less known who are poised to become the new guard of continental porn. The one to prevail in the Best New Performer category was Audrey Reid, but the entire selection confirms how rich the talent pool is that Europe keeps launching. If you want to discover the already established performers awarded at the same edition, check out our selection of the best European pornstars of 2026 according to XMA as well.
Which of these rising pornstars struck you the most for the nominations they earned? And which one, in your opinion, best embodies the excellence of the continental adult scene? Let us know on Instagram!
