Max Dowman: Age, Height, Position, Records and Stats

Max Dowman is a 16-year-old Arsenal attacking midfielder, born on 31 December 2009, who stands 1.83m tall. He is the youngest goalscorer in Premier League history and the youngest player ever to appear in the Champions League, and he won the Premier League title with Arsenal in May 2026, at 16 years and 139 days.

This page collects his records, his numbers and his career so far in one place, and is updated as the season goes on.

At a glance

Full name	Max Robert Dowman
Born	31 December 2009, Chelmsford, Essex
Age	16 (turns 17 on 31 December 2026)
Height	1.83m (6ft 0in)
Position	Attacking midfielder, winger
Club	Arsenal
Squad number	56
Joined Arsenal	2015, aged five, from Billericay Town's youth set-up
International	England youth (U16, U17, U19)

The records

Dowman's career so far is best told through the records it has already broken. All of them were set before his 17th birthday.

Record	Age	Date	Previous holder
Youngest player in Champions League history	15y 308d	4 Nov 2025, v Slavia Prague	Youssoufa Moukoko (16y 18d)
Arsenal's youngest starter	15y 302d	29 Oct 2025, v Brighton (League Cup)	—
Youngest goalscorer in Premier League history	16y 73d	14 Mar 2026, v Everton	James Vaughan
Youngest Premier League winner	16y 139d	May 2026	Phil Foden
Youngest Premier League starter	16y 144d	24 May 2026, v Crystal Palace	—
Youngest UEFA Youth League scorer	14y 8m 19d	19 Sep 2024, v Atalanta	—
Youngest England U19 scorer	15	15 Nov 2025	Ryan Sessegnon

The Champions League debut. He came off the bench in the 82nd minute of Arsenal's 3-0 win at Slavia Prague, replacing Leandro Trossard, and became the first 15-year-old to play in the competition. He later broke Lamine Yamal's record as the youngest player to appear in the knockout rounds.

The Premier League goal. Against Everton on 14 March 2026, in only his third league appearance, he picked the ball up in his own half in stoppage time, beat two players and ran clear from halfway to score into an empty net with Jordan Pickford stranded upfield. The Premier League confirmed it beat James Vaughan's 2005 record by 197 days.

Season by season

Season	Premier League	FA Cup	League Cup	Champions League	Total
2025-26	6 apps, 1 goal	2 apps	2 apps	3 apps	13 apps, 1 goal
2026-27 (to 19 Sep)	1 app	—	1 app, 2 goals	—	2 apps, 2 goals
Career	7 apps, 1 goal	2 apps	3 apps, 2 goals	3 apps	15 apps, 3 goals

His first appearance of 2026-27 in the League Cup was the most productive game of his career: two goals in a 4-2 win at Ipswich on 15 September, the first a solo run seven minutes in. That made him only the second 16-year-old to score twice for a Premier League club, after Wayne Rooney against Wrexham in 2002.

How he got here

Dowman joined Arsenal's academy in 2015, at five, having started at Billericay Town. He was playing for the Under-18s by September 2023, when he was 13.

His first-team introduction came quickly after that. He featured in a pre-season friendly against AC Milan in Singapore on 23 July 2025, aged 15, and made his Premier League debut off the bench against Leeds United on 23 August 2025, at 15 years and 235 days.

From there the season went further than anyone could reasonably have planned. Arsenal won the 2025-26 Premier League, reached the League Cup final and lost the Champions League final to PSG on penalties after a 1-1 draw. Dowman was part of the squad throughout, and was named the Premier League's Home Grown Debutant of the Season.

Position and playing style

Dowman is an attacking midfielder by trade who has also been used as a winger, where he can carry the ball at a full-back. The Everton goal and the first goal at Ipswich show the thing coaches talk about most: he runs with the ball at speed and keeps it under pressure, which is rare at his age against senior defenders.

He also takes set pieces, corners and free-kicks, and is comfortable across the attacking positions. At 1.83m he is already physically closer to a senior player than most 16-year-olds, which is one reason Arsenal have been willing to use him in the Premier League rather than only in the cups.

Mikel Arteta has described him in terms of temperament rather than talent: "For him, everything is natural... he just does what he does best, which is to play football with a lot of courage and determination."

Contract

Dowman cannot yet sign a professional contract, because English football does not allow professional terms before a player's 17th birthday. He signed a pre-contract agreement with Arsenal on 30 January 2026, which commits both sides to a professional deal once he is eligible, on 31 December 2026.

Until then he is on scholarship terms, and his age still shapes his day-to-day life at the club: safeguarding rules mean he is chaperoned on team travel and does not use the main first-team dressing room.

England

He has represented England at Under-16, Under-17 and Under-19 level, and played at the 2025 UEFA European Under-17 Championship, where he scored the opening goal in a 4-2 win over the Czech Republic. He became the youngest scorer in the history of England's Under-19s on 15 November 2025, breaking Ryan Sessegnon's 2016 record.

He has not yet been called up by the senior side.

Honours

• Premier League: 2025-26
• FA Community Shield: 2026
• League Cup runner-up: 2025-26
• Champions League runner-up: 2025-26
• Premier League Home Grown Debutant of the Season: 2025-26

Why the homegrown label matters

Dowman is homegrown in the Premier League's sense, which has a direct value to Arsenal beyond his ability: as an under-21 he does not take up a place on the 25-man squad list at all, and when he turns 21 he will count towards the homegrown quota. How that works, and why clubs pay a premium for it, is covered in Premier League squad rules and why clubs sell academy players.