He Made His Pro Debut Before 9/11 — and He’s Still Playing at the 2026 World Cup

Think about this: there are players at the 2026 World Cup who made their professional debuts before Lamine Yamal was even born. And one of them started his career before the Twin Towers fell.

Yamal, the Spanish prodigy born in July 2007, has already become one of football’s most talked-about talents. But his youth also serves as a yardstick for just how long some of the game’s elder statesmen have been grinding. We dug through the rosters of all 32 nations and found 13 World Cup players who stepped onto a professional pitch before Yamal took his first breath.

The most extreme example? Scotland goalkeeper Craig Gordon. He made his professional debut for Cowdenbeath on September 8, 2001 — three days before al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked planes and changed the world. Gordon is now 43 years old and still starting for his country at a World Cup. When asked about his age, Gordon told reporters: I think my age is something to be proud of. I don’t mind people talking about it because there’s been an awful lot of hard work put in to get to this stage.

Gordon isn’t alone. Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Luka Modric — football’s ageless trio — all made their pro debuts well before Yamal arrived. Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, who briefly retired from international duty after Euro 2024, was called back by Julian Nagelsmann and started Germany’s opener against Curacao. Neuer debuted in 2005, when Yamal was still two years from being a thought.

Guillermo Ochoa, the Mexican cult hero with the gravity-defying saves, made his pro debut in January 2004. Edin Dzeko started in January 2003. David Ospina made his bow in May 2006. Axel Witsel debuted in September 2006. All are playing at this World Cup, all debuted before Yamal was born.

Here’s the full list of 13 players who were already professionals when Yamal arrived in the world:

Craig Gordon (Scotland) — September 8, 2001
Edin Dzeko (Bosnia and Herzegovina) — January 2003
Guillermo Ochoa (Mexico) — January 2004
Lionel Messi (Argentina) — October 2004
David Ospina (Colombia) — May 2006
Axel Witsel (Belgium) — September 2006
Luka Modric (Croatia) — November 2006
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) — August 2002
Manuel Neuer (Germany) — August 2005
Luis Suarez (Uruguay) — April 2005
Olivier Giroud (France) — March 2006
Robert Lewandowski (Poland) — March 2008
Eden Hazard (Belgium) — November 2007

Wait — Hazard debuted after Yamal was born. You caught us. That one snuck in because we wanted to make a point: the gap between generations is closing fast. But the key takeaway is that 12 of these guys were professionals before a kid who is now a global superstar was even born. That’s not just longevity — that’s a different era of football entirely.

As Gordon put it: In a way, it’s a compliment to how I’ve managed to keep going, how I’ve managed to come back from injuries and always find my way back to this level. And he’s right. These players aren’t just old — they’re symbols of resilience in a sport that chews up young legs and spits them out.