<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/world-cup/spain-vs-argentina-live-updates-minute-by-minute-coverage-of-the-2026-world-cup-final/">Spain’s 1-0 triumph over Argentina</a> in the 2026 <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/world-cup/">World Cup</a> final didn’t just deliver the trophy, it also cemented Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi as members of one of the most exclusive clubs in the tournament’s history. Both teenagers lifted the trophy before turning 20, joining a list that stretches back to the very first editions of the World Cup.



<a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/lamine-yamal/">Yamal</a>, 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 Pele and Kylian Mbappe, two of only a handful of players to lift the sport’s biggest prize as teenagers.



Winning a World Cup at such a young age has always been rare, and Spain’s title run adds two new names to a list that, until this tournament, only counted eight members across 76 years of history.



<h2>How many players have won the World Cup before turning 20?</h2>



Including Yamal and Cubarsi, only ten players in World Cup history have won the tournament before their 20th birthday. 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.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" width="1920" height="1080" src="https://media.worldsoccertalk.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2026/07/19175646/yamal-goal-1920x1080.webp" alt="" class="wp-image-667183"><figcaption>Lamine Yamal celebrates Ferran Torres’ goal vs Argentina. (Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



<h2>Chronological list of all players</h2>



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


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<h2>Where Yamal and Cubarsi rank among the youngest</h2>



Ranked strictly by age, Pele 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. <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/pau-cubarsi/">Cubarsi</a> ranks seventh overall at 19 years and 178 days, sitting between Marco Antonio and Mbappe, 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.

Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi join Pele, Mbappe and only seven other players to win the World Cup before turning 20

Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi join Pele, Mbappe and only seven other players to win the World Cup before turning 20 - World Soccer Talk

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The first finalist of the <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/world-cup/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2026 World Cup</a> is <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/spain/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Spain</a> after a 2-0 victory over <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/france/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">France</a>. In this competition, they have been a solid team based on a great defensive system that has only conceded one goal, something <a href="https://worldsoccertalk.com/tag/pau-cubarsi/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pau Cubarsí</a> admitted was doubted.



Cubarsí said: “There may have been some doubts about whether our defense and goalkeeper were good enough, but I think we’ve silenced a lot of critics. We’ve only conceded one goal and we’re in the final. We’re doing an incredible job, and this is everyone’s work, both those who play and those on the bench.”



This was the only part of the team that was criticized before the tournament, with Unai Simón leading the defense of Pedro Porro, Cubarsí, Aymeric Laporte and Marc Cucurella, who have all been fantastic and have only conceded against Belgium.



<h2>Cubarsí on being a young player</h2>



Being a player who represents Barcelona requires a lot of talent. However, it is not just about that because the mental aspect of the sport is crucial. Especially for a player in his position, experience plays a great role.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" width="1920" height="1080" src="https://media.worldsoccertalk.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2026/07/14223132/cubarsi-1-1-1920x1080.webp" alt="" class="wp-image-665914"><figcaption>Cubarsí and Porro make a great pairing on the right for Spain (David Ramos/Getty Images)</figcaption></figure>



All of this may not apply to the center back because he does not look like a 19-year-old player with the composure he displays in every match, something Cubarsí also commented on regarding his teammate.


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Cubarsí said: “Maybe I am too young for everything I am experiencing, like Lamine (Yamal), but I want to tell people who perhaps have not taken that step yet and are 19 years old to wait that their opportunity will come. Soccer is something you have to enjoy, and if there is sacrifice, everything will turn out well. I encourage them to keep fighting for their dreams.”



<h2>Cubarsí thanked his family after the match</h2>



The calmness with which the team played against France was part of the victory that put them in the final. For Cubarsí, much of the credit should go to his family for helping him from the beginning.



Cubarsí said: “It’s a dream come true, and I’m very proud, both for myself and for my family, who have been with me every step of the way. Being in a World Cup final is something unique, and I owe all of this to them because they’ve helped me from the very beginning to get here.”

‘We’ve silenced a lot of critics,’ Pau Cubarsí responds to Spain criticism before the World Cup

‘We've silenced a lot of critics,’ Pau Cubarsí responds to Spain criticism before the World Cup - World Soccer Talk

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Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi join Pele, Mbappe and only seven other players to win the World Cup before turning 20

World Cup

‘We’ve silenced a lot of critics,’ Pau Cubarsí responds to Spain criticism before the World Cup