74-Year Old With Six Grandkids Becomes World's Oldest Professional Footballer

Ezzeldin Bahader is a Guinness World Record holder after becoming the oldest professional footballer.

The 74-year-old who has four children and six grandchildren, signed a contract with Egyptian third division side 6th October Club back in January.

He captained the side in his debut against Genius in March, scoring his side's goal from the spot when he emphatically whacked in a penalty.

It was reported he needed to play another 90 minutes to achieve his goal of breaking the record but COVID-19 struck and saw the bid to make history was put on the backburner.

However, Bahader achieved his goal this weekend when he turned out against El Ayat Sports club on Saturday. The veteran missed a penalty in a 3-2 defeat but had his grandkids watching on for the special presentation post-match.

He set a new record prior to his 75th birthday on November 3, breaking the previous effort from Itzhak Hayk, who was two weeks away from turning 74 at the time.

Hayk, Iraqi-born but made in Israel after moving in 1950, played in between the sticks in the fifth tier of Israeli football against Ramat Israel in a game his side lost 4-1.

Bahader's contract has technically finished now he's accomplished what he set out to do but he's not done just yet.

"I dream of being able to break my own record one more time, just to make the competition a little harder," he told reporters after his record-breaking antics.

Topics: Football News, Football

Josh Lawless

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