Youngest player in Champions League history: Max Dowman of Arsenal breaks UCL record

As clubs pour an increased amount of financial wealth into player development, hoping to strike gold with young players who count as homegrown talent, the age at which young stars become ready for competitive action seems to decrease every year.

Yet still, stepping on the field in UEFA Champions League play requires players to be ready for the toughest club competition in the world, often leaving youngsters to develop further before they are trusted with a spot on the field.

This is what makes Arsenal starlet Max Dowman so special. After becoming the second-youngest player to see time in a Premier League match earlier this season, the 15-year-old has now made an even greater mark on the Champions League, setting a competition record that will now be exceedingly difficult to break.

AllSportsPeople details what Dowman has to do to become the youngest player in Champions League history, and where he would stand in the competition's legendary archives of youth.

MORE: Lineups, team news, and injury latest for Arsenal as they meet Athletic Club in the Champions League

Youngest players in Champions League history

Max Dowman has become the youngest player in Champions League history with his appearance on November 4, 2025 against Slavia Prague. The 15-year-old wonderkid entered in the 73rd minute, replacing Leandro Trossard with Arsenal leading 3-0.

Prior to Dowman's appearance, the youngest player in Champions League history was Youssoufa Moukoko, who came in for 32 substitute minutes off the Borussia Dortmund bench as they defeated Zenit St. Petersburg 2-1 in a 2020 group stage match.

Moukoko's appearance, which came just 18 days after his 16th birthday, broke a record that had been held for 26 years, snapping the mark held by Celestine Babayaro of Anderlecht back in 1994. Only three individuals have breached Babayaro's benchmark since, as Lamine Yamal missed Moukoko's record by 50 days when he made his Barcelona debut in 2023.

Data via UEFA Champions League.

Max Dowman sets Champions League record for youngest player

Having joined the Arsenal youth academy in 2015 at the age of five, Max Dowman has been fast-tracked through the famous Premier League youth setup for years.

He was the youngest goal scorer in UEFA Youth League history at the age of 14 years, 263 days, and made his senior debut with Arsenal at 15 years, 235 days, just shy of the all-time Premier League record held by teammate Ethan Nwaneri.

After failing to appear in the club's first three matches of the 2025/26 Champions League campaign, Dowman finally saw the pitch against Slavia Prague in matchweek four of the league phase.

Incredibly, Dowman is so young that he still had plenty of room to set the record. The 15-year-old could have done so in any of Arsenal's next four European fixtures had he not been brought on against Slavia Prague.

Youngest player to win a Champions League title

The record for youngest player to win a Champions League title was set in 1962 and still has yet to be broken. Antonio Simoes of Benfica was tabbed as the youngest ever, lifting the European Cup with Benfica, who won for the second time.

The title-winning 1994/95 Ajax squad was memorable for a number of reasons, but one of its hallmarks was its youth. That year, three players made their mark on the competition as five of the youngest ever to lift the trophy, with the memorable trio of Nwankwo Kanu, Patrick Kluivert and Clarance Seedorf etched into Champions League history.

Also on the list is Iker Casillas, who in 2000 helped Real Madrid win the Champions League title just four days after his 19th birthday, kicking off one of the greatest goalkeeping careers the game has ever seen.