Black Stars midfielder Caleb Yirenkyi etched his name into Ghanaian football history on Wednesday after scoring a dramatic stoppage-time winner in Ghana’s 2026 FIFA World Cup opener against Panama.
The 20-year-old struck deep into added time to settle a tense 0–0 contest at BMO Field in Toronto, securing all three points for Ghana in their opening Group L fixture and instantly becoming the nation’s youngest-ever goalscorer at the World Cup.
At 20 years and 153 days old, Yirenkyi broke a long-standing national record that had stood for exactly two decades. The previous record belonged to legendary Black Stars striker Asamoah Gyan, who was 20 years and 207 days old when he scored Ghana’s first-ever World Cup goal against the Czech Republic in 2006.
Yirenkyi’s historic strike also placed him ahead of Mohammed Kudus, who previously ranked as the third-youngest Ghanaian World Cup scorer after netting against South Korea in 2022 at 22 years and 118 days.
The goal made Yirenkyi the 10th different Ghanaian player to score at a World Cup, taking the Black Stars’ overall tally in the competition to 19 goals.
The victory gives Ghana a strong start to their Group L campaign, placing them in an early advantageous position as they push for qualification to the knockout stages.
Attention now turns to a major second group fixture against England on June 23 in Boston, before the Black Stars conclude their group-stage campaign against Croatia on June 27.
With momentum on their side, Ghana will hope Yirenkyi’s historic moment proves to be the spark for a deep run in the tournament.
