In a thrilling Group H match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Spanish winger Lamine Yamal made history by becoming the youngest goal scorer in the tournament’s history, surpassing the previous record held by Argentina’s Lionel Messi. During Spain’s 4-0 victory over Saudi Arabia, Yamal found the net with an assist from Mikel Oyarzabal, marking his first goal in the competition.
At 18 years and 323 days old, Yamal etched his name into the record books and pushed Messi down to the ninth position on the all-time list of youngest World Cup scorers. Messi had held the record at 18 years and 357 days. Yamal’s achievement is even more remarkable as he joins an elite group of teenage talents who have left their mark on football’s biggest stage.
The feat also placed him alongside the legendary Pelé, who scored his first World Cup goal at 17 years and 239 days, and remains the youngest ever. Yamal is just the second player aged 18 or under to score the opening goal in a World Cup match, a milestone previously achieved by Pelé in 1958 against Wales.
The complete list of the ten youngest scorers in World Cup history now includes Pelé (17 years, 239 days), Manuel Rosas (18 years, 93 days), Gavi (18 years, 110 days), Ibrahim Mbaye (18 years, 142 days), Michael Owen (18 years, 190 days), Nicolae Kovacs (18 years, 197 days), Dmitri Sychev (18 years, 231 days), Lamine Yamal (18 years, 323 days), Lionel Messi (18 years, 357 days), and Julian Green (19 years, 25 days).