2026 World Cup: Lamine Yamal Set Unique Record vs Saudi Arabia, Surpass Kylian Mbappe
- Spain winger Lamine Yamal has set a unique record at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada
- The 18-year-old superstar scored his first World Cup goal against Saudi Arabia, younger than Kylian Mbappe did at the tournament
- Barcelona youngster Gavi still holds Spain’s record as the youngest World Cup goalscorer after his goal in 2022
Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal has set a unique record at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, surpassing a milestone previously held by France forward Kylian Mbappe.
Yamal endured a quiet start to the tournament as Spain were held to a goalless draw by Cape Verde in their opening Group H match.
However, the teenager made headlines in Spain's second game, scoring in a commanding 4-0 victory over Saudi Arabia.
Source: Getty Images
Yamal joins Pele in World Cup history
Lamine Yamal wasted little time turning the hype surrounding him into a record-breaking achievement.
The Barcelona star opened the scoring after collecting a superb pass from Mikel Oyarzabal before calmly slotting the ball into the net to hand Spain a 1-0 lead.
Spain doubled their lead through Oyarzabal, who finished low past goalkeeper Mohammad Al-Owais after Saudi Arabia had failed to clear a corner in the 21st minute, per SofaScore.
Three minutes later, the Real Sociedad forward scored a brace, sweeping home Dani Olmo's flick-on at the far post to all but end the game as a contest.
In the 49th minute, Marc Cucurella's effort was rebounded off Al Tambakti into the back of his net to make it 4-0 in favour of Spain.
According to BBC, Yamal became only the second player aged 18 or younger to score the opening goal of a FIFA World Cup match.
The only player to achieve the feat before him was Brazilian legend Pele, who was 17 years old when he scored the opening goal in Brazil's victory over Wales at the 1958 World Cup.
Source: Getty Images
The achievement places Yamal among the most celebrated young talents in World Cup history and also sees him eclipse another remarkable benchmark.
Yamal scored his first World Cup goal at the age of 18 years and 343 days. That made him younger than Mbappé was when the French superstar scored his first World Cup goal.
Mbappe was 19 years and 183 days old when he found the net for France during the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Yamal's strike therefore puts him ahead of one of football's biggest modern stars while further cementing his place alongside Pele in World Cup history.
Meanwhile, Yamal did not break every Spanish age-related World Cup record as that honour still belongs to his Barcelona teammate Gavi.
The midfielder remains Spain’s youngest-ever goalscorer at the World Cup after scoring against Costa Rica during the 2022 tournament.
Ronaldo continues goal drought
Legit.ng earlier reported that Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo has extended his goal drought at major international tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Championship.
The Al Nassr forward has now gone 10 consecutive matches without scoring for Portugal in major competitions.
Source: Legit.ng
