diff --git a/packages/trace-viewer/src/sw.ts b/packages/trace-viewer/src/sw.ts
index 841056f45746c..14d26c2a36c3b 100644
--- a/packages/trace-viewer/src/sw.ts
+++ b/packages/trace-viewer/src/sw.ts
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@ import { unwrapPopoutUrl } from './snapshotRenderer';
 import { SnapshotServer } from './snapshotServer';
 import { TraceModel } from './traceModel';
 import { FetchTraceModelBackend, ZipTraceModelBackend } from './traceModelBackends';
+import { TraceVersionError } from './traceModernizer';
 
 // @ts-ignore
 declare const self: ServiceWorkerGlobalScope;
@@ -57,6 +58,8 @@ async function loadTrace(traceUrl: string, traceFileName: string | null, clientI
     console.error(error);
     if (error?.message?.includes('Cannot find .trace file') && await traceModel.hasEntry('index.html'))
       throw new Error('Could not load trace. Did you upload a Playwright HTML report instead? Make sure to extract the archive first and then double-click the index.html file or put it on a web server.');
+    if (error instanceof TraceVersionError)
+      throw new Error(`Could not load trace from ${traceFileName || traceUrl}. ${error.message}`);
     if (traceFileName)
       throw new Error(`Could not load trace from ${traceFileName}. Make sure to upload a valid Playwright trace.`);
     throw new Error(`Could not load trace from ${traceUrl}. Make sure a valid Playwright Trace is accessible over this url.`);
diff --git a/packages/trace-viewer/src/traceModernizer.ts b/packages/trace-viewer/src/traceModernizer.ts
index a2a987318cd24..e7c65ac41fca1 100644
--- a/packages/trace-viewer/src/traceModernizer.ts
+++ b/packages/trace-viewer/src/traceModernizer.ts
@@ -22,6 +22,15 @@ import type * as traceV6 from './versions/traceV6';
 import type { ActionEntry, ContextEntry, PageEntry } from './entries';
 import type { SnapshotStorage } from './snapshotStorage';
 
+export class TraceVersionError extends Error {
+  constructor(message: string) {
+    super(message);
+    this.name = 'TraceVersionError';
+  }
+}
+
+const latestVersion: trace.VERSION = 7;
+
 export class TraceModernizer {
   private _contextEntry: ContextEntry;
   private _snapshotStorage: SnapshotStorage;
@@ -71,6 +80,8 @@ export class TraceModernizer {
     const contextEntry = this._contextEntry;
     switch (event.type) {
       case 'context-options': {
+        if (event.version > latestVersion)
+          throw new TraceVersionError('The trace was created by a newer version of Playwright and is not supported by this version of the viewer. Please use latest Playwright to open the trace.');
         this._version = event.version;
         contextEntry.origin = event.origin;
         contextEntry.browserName = event.browserName;
@@ -181,9 +192,8 @@ export class TraceModernizer {
     let version = this._version || event.version;
     if (version === undefined)
       return [event];
-    const lastVersion: trace.VERSION = 7;
     let events = [event];
-    for (; version < lastVersion; ++version)
+    for (; version < latestVersion; ++version)
       events = (this as any)[`_modernize_${version}_to_${version + 1}`].call(this, events);
     return events;
   }
diff --git a/tests/assets/trace-from-the-future.zip b/tests/assets/trace-from-the-future.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..4100bf93c6305
Binary files /dev/null and b/tests/assets/trace-from-the-future.zip differ
diff --git a/tests/library/trace-viewer.spec.ts b/tests/library/trace-viewer.spec.ts
index c55e9c6594fbd..d341e039f9054 100644
--- a/tests/library/trace-viewer.spec.ts
+++ b/tests/library/trace-viewer.spec.ts
@@ -120,6 +120,11 @@ test('should open simple trace viewer', async ({ showTraceViewer }) => {
   ]);
 });
 
+test('should complain about newer version of trace in old viewer', async ({ showTraceViewer, asset }, testInfo) => {
+  const traceViewer = await showTraceViewer([asset('trace-from-the-future.zip')]);
+  await expect(traceViewer.page.getByText('The trace was created by a newer version of Playwright and is not supported by this version of the viewer.')).toBeVisible();
+});
+
 test('should contain action info', async ({ showTraceViewer }) => {
   const traceViewer = await showTraceViewer([traceFile]);
   await traceViewer.selectAction('locator.click');