Pelé Joins Exclusive Club of World Cup Winners Before Turning 20

Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi have become the latest members of an exclusive club, joining Pelé and Kylian Mbappé as players who won the World Cup before turning 20. This achievement places them among the youngest World Cup winners of all time, a feat achieved by only ten players in history.

What happened?

In the 2026 World Cup final, Spain's 1-0 triumph over Argentina cemented Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi's place in football history. Both teenagers lifted the trophy before turning 20, joining a list that stretches back to the very first editions of the World Cup.

Yamal, who turned 19 just days before the final, becomes the fifth-youngest World Cup winner ever, while Cubarsi, also 19, slots in among the same elite company. Their achievement places them alongside legends like Pelé and Kylian Mbappé, two of only a handful of players to lift the sport's biggest prize as teenagers.

Why it matters for Pelé

Pelé's own World Cup win in 1958 at the age of 17 remains the youngest World Cup winner ever. Yamal's achievement, however, ranks him as the fourth-youngest World Cup winner in history, tied with Coutinho at 19 years and 6 days. Cubarsi ranks seventh overall at 19 years and 178 days, sitting between Marco Antonio and Mbappé, whose own famous triumph with France in 2018 came at 19 years and 207 days.

What comes next?

Between them, Yamal and Cubarsi give Spain two representatives inside the ten youngest World Cup winners of all time, a distinction no other nation besides Brazil currently holds. This achievement adds two new names to a list that, until this tournament, only counted eight members across 76 years of history.

The group spans nine different editions, from Uruguay's triumph in 1950 through Spain's win in 2026, and includes representatives from four different countries: Brazil, Italy, Uruguay, and France, now joined by Spain. Lamine Yamal celebrates Ferran Torres' goal vs Argentina. (Getty Images)

Chronological list of all players

- Ruben Moran (Uruguay, 1950)-19 years, 344 days - Pelé (Brazil, 1958)-17 years, 249 days - Jose Altafini, listed by FIFA as Mazzola (Brazil, 1958)-19 years, 309 days - Coutinho (Brazil, 1962)-19 years, 6 days - Marco Antonio (Brazil, 1970)-19 years, 135 days - Giuseppe Bergomi (Italy, 1982)-18 years, 174 days - Ronaldo (Brazil, 1994)-17 years, 298 days - Kylian Mbappé (France, 2018)-19 years, 207 days - Lamine Yamal (Spain, 2026)-19 years, 6 days - Pau Cubarsi (Spain, 2026)-19 years, 178 days

Where Yamal and Cubarsi rank among the youngest

Ranked strictly by age, Pelé remains the youngest World Cup winner ever at 17 years and 249 days, followed by Ronaldo at 17 years and 298 days and Bergomi at 18 years and 174 days. Yamal slots in just behind that trio, tied with Coutinho at 19 years and 6 days, making him the fourth-youngest World Cup winner in history. Cubarsi ranks seventh overall at 19 years and 178 days, sitting between Marco Antonio and Mbappé, whose own famous triumph with France in 2018 came at 19 years and 207 days.

Between them, Yamal and Cubarsi give Spain two representatives inside the ten youngest World Cup winners of all time, a distinction no other nation besides Brazil currently holds.

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