The FIFA World Cup Best Young Player award honors the standout under-21 performer at each tournament.
It covers 17 winners across two categories: retrospective selections for 1958–2002 and official awards from 2006 onward.
To qualify, a player must be 21 years old or younger at the start of the calendar year in which the World Cup takes place.
For the 2022 tournament, that meant players born on or after January 1, 2001 were eligible.
Three winners stand out above the rest: Pelé (1958), Kylian Mbappé (2018), and Enzo Fernández (2022). They are the only three Best Young Player winners who also lifted the World Cup trophy with their teams.
Complete List of World Cup Best Young Player Winners
The table below shows all 17 winners from 1958 to 2022, along with their country, age at the tournament, and award type.
| Year | Player | Country | Age | Award Type |
| 1958 | Pelé | Brazil | 17 | Retrospective ⭐ |
| 1962 | Flórián Albert | Hungary | 20 | Retrospective |
| 1966 | Franz Beckenbauer | West Germany | 20 | Retrospective |
| 1970 | Teófilo Cubillas | Peru | 21 | Retrospective |
| 1974 | Władysław Żmuda | Poland | 20 | Retrospective |
| 1978 | Antonio Cabrini | Italy | 20 | Retrospective |
| 1982 | Manuel Amoros | France | 21 | Retrospective |
| 1986 | Enzo Scifo | Belgium | 20 | Retrospective |
| 1990 | Robert Prosinečki | Yugoslavia | 21 | Retrospective |
| 1994 | Marc Overmars | Netherlands | 20 | Retrospective |
| 1998 | Michael Owen | England | 18 | Retrospective |
| 2002 | Landon Donovan | USA | 20 | Retrospective |
| 2006 | Lukas Podolski | Germany | 21 | Official |
| 2010 | Thomas Müller | Germany | 20 | Official |
| 2014 | Paul Pogba | France | 21 | Official |
| 2018 | Kylian Mbappé | France | 19 | Official ⭐ |
| 2022 | Enzo Fernández | Argentina | 21 | Official ⭐ |
- ⭐ = Winner was on the World Cup-winning team
The 12 retrospective winners (1958–2002) were identified through a FIFA fan survey in 2009.
The 5 official winners (2006–2022) were chosen through fan votes during or after each tournament.
France leads all nations with 3 total winners: Manuel Amoros (1982), Paul Pogba (2014), and Kylian Mbappé (2018).
Germany is the only country with 2 official award winners: Lukas Podolski (2006) and Thomas Müller (2010).hitc+1
Retrospective vs. Official Award: Key Differences
The Best Young Player award was not always given out during the World Cup itself. For the first 12 tournaments (1958–2002), no formal young player recognition existed at the time of play.
In 2009, FIFA ran an online fan poll to retroactively name the best young player for each of those tournaments.
Pelé won the overall fan vote with 61% of all votes cast, finishing ahead of Teófilo Cubillas (1970) and Michael Owen (1998).
These retrospective picks are historical recognitions, not competitive awards given out at the time. The players themselves did not receive trophies at those original tournaments.
FIFA officially introduced the Best Young Player Award at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, and Lukas Podolski became the first recipient after a strong group stage performance for the host nation.
For official awards from 2006 onward, FIFA’s Technical Study Group first creates a shortlist of nominees based on tournament performances, and fans vote online to choose the winner.football.sporting99+1
Notable Records and Achievements
The winners list holds several standout records worth knowing:khelnow+2
- Youngest winner ever: Pelé at 17 years old (1958), the only 17-year-old to ever win the award
- Only teenager among official award winners: Kylian Mbappé at 19 (2018), who also scored twice in a single World Cup knockout match, a feat not seen since Pelé in 1958
- England’s only winner: Michael Owen (1998) at age 18, chosen retrospectively in the 2009 FIFA poll
- France leads all nations with 3 winners: Amoros (1982), Pogba (2014), Mbappé (2018)
- Germany is the only nation with 2 official winners: Podolski (2006) and Müller (2010)
- Only 3 of 17 winners were on championship teams: Pelé (1958), Mbappé (2018), Fernández (2022)
- Notable absences: Lionel Messi was 18 at the 2006 World Cup but did not win the award as Lukas Podolski took it instead; Cristiano Ronaldo played that same tournament at age 21 and also did not winhitc+1
Age Eligibility and Selection Criteria
The age rule for the Best Young Player award is straightforward but specific.
A player must be 21 years old or younger at the start of the calendar year in which the World Cup is held, not at the time of the tournament itself.
This means for 2022, any player born on or after January 1, 2001 was eligible, even if they turned 22 during the Qatar tournament.
The same age calculation rule applied when FIFA assigned retrospective winners through its 2009 survey.
For official awards from 2006 onward, the FIFA Technical Study Group evaluates all eligible players based on performance and overall tournament impact, then narrows the field to a shortlist.
Fans cast votes on FIFA’s website, and the player with the most votes wins.
The retrospective selections followed the same age eligibility standard but used a single public poll conducted years after the tournaments concluded.
Award Introduction and Evolution
No official young player honor existed for the first 48 years of the World Cup. Breakout performances by teenagers like Pelé in 1958 went unrecognized at an award level during that era.
FIFA formally introduced the Best Young Player Award at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, creating an official category to spotlight emerging under-21 talent. Lukas Podolski of Germany was the first to receive it.
To acknowledge young stars from previous tournaments, FIFA then conducted its retrospective 2009 poll, filling the historical gap for 1958–2002.
The award has appeared under slightly different names across tournaments, including the “FIFA Young Player Award” and the “Hyundai Best Young Player Award” due to sponsorship naming, but the criteria and selection process stayed consistent throughout.
Official winners like Thomas Müller (2010) and Paul Pogba (2014) used the visibility of the award to launch careers at the very top level of club football.
Championship Team Correlation
Only 3 of the 17 Best Young Player winners were part of the team that won the World Cup that same year.
That figure is strikingly low and shows how difficult it is to both win the tournament and stand out individually as a young player.
Pelé achieved it first in 1958, leading Brazil to their debut World Cup title at just 17. Kylian Mbappé replicated the feat in 2018, helping France beat Croatia in the final while becoming the tournament’s most electrifying young player.
Enzo Fernández completed the same double in 2022 with Argentina, winning the tournament in a dramatic final against France before being voted the best young player of the competition.
The remaining 14 winners, including Paul Pogba (France 2014) and Thomas Müller (Germany 2010), earned the award despite their teams not winning the tournament.
This shows the award is genuinely based on individual performance, not team outcome. Winning teams do provide more high-pressure matches for young players to shine in, but team success alone does not determine the winner.
FAQs
Who was the youngest Best Young Player winner at the World Cup?
Pelé is the youngest winner ever, receiving the retrospective 1958 award at just 17 years old. No other winner in the history of the Best Young Player award has been younger than 17 at the time of their tournament.
How old do you have to be to win the FIFA Young Player Award?
Players must be 21 years old or younger, with age calculated at the start of the calendar year the World Cup is held, not during the tournament itself. For 2022, players born on or after January 1, 2001 were eligible.plus.fifa+1
Did Lionel Messi ever win the Best Young Player award at the World Cup?
No, Messi did not win the award. He was 18 years old and eligible at the 2006 World Cup, but Germany’s Lukas Podolski won that year’s official award instead.
What is the difference between retrospective and official Best Young Player awards?
Retrospective awards cover the 1958–2002 tournaments and were assigned through a FIFA fan poll conducted in 2009, years after those tournaments ended. Official awards began at the 2006 World Cup, where FIFA’s Technical Study Group nominates players and fans vote during or after the tournament.
How many World Cup Best Young Player winners also won the tournament?
Only 3 of the 17 winners were on the championship team: Pelé (Brazil 1958), Kylian Mbappé (France 2018), and Enzo Fernández (Argentina 2022). The other 14 Best Young Player winners played for teams that did not win the World Cup that year.
