Updated Jun. 22, 2026 4:09 p.m. ET
Lamine Yamal has arrived on the FIFA World Cup stage.
Spain’s superstar winger, who turns 19 next month, scored a goal in the 10th minute of his country’s 4-0 Group H victory over Saudi Arabia on Sunday. It was Yamal’s first career World Cup goal in what was also his first World Cup start and second appearance in the tournament altogether.
Yamal came off the bench in Spain’s shock June 15 draw against Cape Verde, as he was dealing with a hamstring injury. While he only played one half against Saudi Arabia for the same reason, it was all that Spain needed from him.
“The difference from the first game and today was, I would say, Yamal because he brings something that I think nobody else has, they creativity,” Zlatan Ibrahimović opined after Spain’s win. “He only played 45 minutes, but everybody knows that when you play against Spain, you have to watch out; they’re the European champions.”
But what is it that makes Yamal special?
“The creativity,” World Cup winner Thierry Henry said of Yamal, who plays at Barcelona just as Henry did. “He’s the sort of guy that thinks the game. He does things differently. He will attract different people, find different ways with his dribbling, passing and the aura that he has. He knows when to go and when not to go and stop the rhythm of the game sometimes, assisting goals.
“To talk about him, we know we’re talking about Spain today, obviously, but also at Barcelona, when he doesn’t play, it’s on the same team. When you have Lamine Yamal on your team, anything can happen.”
Yamal has spent the last four seasons playing for Barcelona in LaLiga, with whom he finished first in the league in three of those seasons (2022-23, 2024-25 and 2025-26). Last season (2025-26), Yamal totaled 16 goals, 11 assists and knocked through three penalty kicks, which were all career highs.
Prior to becoming a fixture for Barcelona, Yamal was part of La Masia, Barcelona’s youth academy, since 2014; Yamal ultimately made his debut for the club in April 2023, when he was just 15.
Next up for Yamal and Spain (1W-1D-0L) is a June 26 showdown against Uruguay (0W-1D-0L), which is both countries’ final match of the group stage.
