As of November 2022, Northern Ireland's Norman Whiteside was the youngest player to ever play in a World Cup, aged 17 years and 40 days when he played against Yugoslavia in 1982. The youngest player at the 2022 World Cup, Germany's Youssoufa Moukoko, turned 18 on the day the tournament kicked off.
Youngest players in FIFA World Cup history as of November 2022
| Characteristic | Age at first game |
|---|---|
| Norman Whiteside (Northern Ireland, 1982) | 17 years, 40 days |
| Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon, 1998) | 17 years, 98 days |
| Femi Opabunmi (Nigeria, 2002) | 17 years, 100 days |
| Salomon Olembé (Cameroon, 1998) | 17 years, 184 days |
| Pelé (Brazil, 1958) | 17 years, 234 days |
| Bartholomew Ogbeche (Nigeria, 2002) | 17 years, 244 days |
| Rigobert Song (Cameroon, 1994) | 17 years, 353 days |
| Youssoufa Moukoko (Germany, 2022) | 18 years, 3 days |
| Garang Kuol (Australia, 2022) | 18 years, 69 days |
| Gavi (Spain, 2022) | 18 years, 110 days |
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