Lionel Messi, Diego Maradona, Erling Haaland and the superstars who have dominated the U20 World Cup

Before many of the game's legends became, well, legends, they were first hopefuls, prospects, starlets. And before many of them went on to lift some of the sport's most iconic trophies, they first lifted the Under-20 World Cup on their journey towards immortality.

Launched in 1977, the U20 World Cup, or the FIFA World Youth Championship as it was called until 2005, has served as a proving ground for several of the game's icons. Between them, Brazil and Argentina have lifted the trophy 11 times, and many of the players that defined generations for those two South American nations emerged in this tournament.

From Diego Maradona to Lionel Messi, Argentina have produced some of the world's best, while Brazilian stars Fernandinho and Oscar both scored some of the most memorable goals this tournament has to offer. But it's not just South American stars that have dominated this competition, though, as a certain Norwegian terminator first went mainstream with one of the most dominant performances this sport has seen at any level.

GOAL looks back at some of the biggest names and most memorable performances in U20 World Cup history: