Yamal makes World Cup history at 18, beating Messi’s record on football’s biggest stage.
Lamine Yamal burst onto the global football scene when he made his Barcelona first-team debut on April 29, 2023, at just 15 years old. The gifted winger, known for his exceptional dribbling and creativity, quickly drew comparisons with Lionel Messi, the Barcelona legend whose extraordinary career at the club established him as one of football’s greatest-ever players.
Barcelona was navigating a difficult financial period, with limited ability to sign major stars after several high-profile departures and retirements. Against that backdrop, Yamal began emerging as a rare talent, combining extraordinary ability with a maturity and composure unusual for a player of his age.
Despite his son’s rapid rise, Yamal’s father, Mounir Nasraoui, who was born in Morocco, remained cautious and avoided allowing the attention to overshadow his development.
It was only after Yamal’s stunning performances for Spain at Euro 2024 — including a spectacular semifinal goal against Kylian Mbappe’s France — that Nasraoui revealed a remarkable family secret that had been kept away from the public for years.
As Yamal became the breakout star of the tournament, his father shared an old photograph on Instagram showing a young Lionel Messi bathing baby Yamal during a 2007 Barcelona charity calendar project with UNICEF. Nasraoui captioned the image: “The beginning of two legends.”
At the time, Messi was already emerging as a teenage sensation, although his transformation into one of football’s greatest goalscorers was still ahead. Yamal was just six months old when the photograph was taken.
Nasraoui had kept the picture private until his son became one of Spain’s key players during their Euro 2024 triumph. Few expected a teenager to dominate a major international tournament, but Yamal’s breathtaking displays eventually led his father to reveal the image, triggering a wave of viral reactions across social media.
Since then, Yamal has continued his meteoric rise, playing a crucial role in Barcelona’s back-to-back La Liga titles in 2025 and 2026. Last year, he also inherited Barcelona’s famous No. 10 shirt after signing a new contract with the club.
Despite dealing with an injury setback towards the end of the La Liga season, Yamal arrived at the 2026 World Cup in North America as one of Spain’s biggest hopes.
After being introduced as a substitute against Cape Verde, who frustrated Spain with a disciplined defensive display, Yamal returned to the starting lineup against Saudi Arabia. He made an immediate impact, scoring his first World Cup goal in Spain’s 4-0 victory to revive their campaign.
The teenager registered six attempts on goal and completed 88 per cent of his passes, underlining his influence on the match. Before kick-off, Saudi fans had mocked him with chants of “Where is Yamal?” from the stands at Atlanta Stadium. His response came on Instagram with a simple message: “I am here,” alongside a celebration photo of his goal.
Beyond the social media drama, Yamal achieved another historic milestone by surpassing Messi’s World Cup record. He scored his first World Cup goal at 18 years and 343 days, becoming younger than Messi, who was 18 years and 357 days old when he scored his first World Cup goal in 2006.
While Messi had to wait until the age of 35 to lift the World Cup trophy in 2022, Yamal could have the opportunity to achieve football’s ultimate prize much earlier. With a talented Spanish squad built around him, the teenager remains one of the leading figures in the country’s quest for World Cup glory.
