At the World Cup, history can be made with any goal. At 42, Cameroon's Roger Milla set the record for oldest player to score in World Cup history in 1994, while Brazilian legend Pelé began his historic career scoring against Wales in 1958 as a 17-year-old to become the youngest man ever to score at the World Cup. While Milla's record for oldest goal scorer will not be topped in 2026, he could be joined by fellow 40-year-olds Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric or Edin Dzeko. Will any teenagers join the likes of Pele, Gavi or Michael Owen?
Here are the oldest and youngest men to score in World Cup history:
Oldest
Roger Milla (Cameroon), 42 years, 39 days (1994 vs. Russia)
Pepe (Portugal), 39 years, 283 days (2022 vs. Switzerland)
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), 37 years, 292 days (2022 vs. Ghana)
Gunnar Gren (Sweden), 37 years, 236 days (1928 vs. West Germany)
Cuauhtémoc Blanco (Mexico), 37 years, 151 days (2010 vs. France)
Youngest
Pelé (Brazil), 17 years, 239 days (1958 vs. Wales)
Gavi (Spain), 18 years, 110 days (2022 vs. Costa Rica)
Michael Owen (England), 18 years, 190 days (1998 vs. Romania)
Nicolae Kovács (Romania), 18 years, 197 days (1930 vs. Peru)
Dmitri Sychev (Russia), 18 years, 231 days (2002 vs. Belgium)
For more World Cup content, check out the ESPN hub page for scores, schedules and more.
