There is always much debate around these kinds of topics due to the accuracy or lack of of birth certificates in some countries, and it’s hard to say definitively what level of football you need to play at for it to count.
However, we’ve attempted to compile a list of footballers who’ve represented their clubs or countries at strikingly young ages, with their career trajectories thereafter being largely mixed. One thing we can say for certain is that Christopher Atherton has now become the youngest footballer to play at senior level in the UK after his appearance for Northern Irish club Glenavon last night.
Having played at such a high level at only 13 will mean his progress will be closely watched from here, having broken a record which stood in the UK for more than 40 years.
Eric Godpower Marshall (11 years old)
Eric Godpower Marshall is believed to have become the youngest player to compete in a men’s senior game this year, when he took part in 80 minutes of FC Gar'ou’s 4-1 win over FC Haifa in Liberia’s fourth division. While admittedly not the highest standard of the game, a tweet from the club of Marshall’s personal highlights suggests that he acquitted himself well against much larger opponents.
Mauricio Baldivieso (12 years old)
Mauricio Baldivieso long held the crown of the youngest footballer in the world until Marshall came along, having taken part in a Bolivian league game for Club Aurora against La Paz at the age of just 12. However, it must be said that Baldivieso’s father was his manager at the time, and he only came on as a substitute late in a game that proved to be his only appearance for two years.
Axel Kei (13 years old)
Axel Kei has taken Freddy Adu’s crown as the youngest US football prodigy to take part in a men’s senior game, but Kei will be hoping to spend longer at the pinnacle of the game than Adu managed. The forward made his debut for Real Monarchs last year at the age of just 13 years and 282 days and has since signed a pro contract with Real Saltlake at the age of 14.
Christopher Atherton (13 years old)
At 13 years and 329 days old, Christopher Atherton has become the youngest player to take part at senior level in football in the UK, breaking the record of Eamon Collins who played for Blackpool at the age of 14. Atherton came on as substitute in Glenavon’s 6-0 drubbing of Dollingstown in the Irish League Cup and even got an assist to his name to go with his record.
Souleymane Mamam (13 years old - disputed)
There is a high amount of debate surrounding this one, but Souleymane Maman is believed by some to be the youngest ever player to take part in a World Cup qualifier when he competed for Togo against Zambia in 2001. Such was his prowess and the buzz around him that Manchester United swooped in to sign the player, but he never made an appearance for the club largely due to work permit reasons.
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