All the Details on the FIFA U-17 World Cup

If you're a soccer fan, you should value the importance of youth competitions, such as the FIFA U-17 World Cup. The stars of tomorrow begin their journey in these competitive competitions.

A new edition of one of FIFA’s international youth soccer competitions is closing in: the FIFA U-17 World Cup. In today’s post, learn all you need to know about the tournament that brings together the best future players on the planet.

Though the scoreboard always plays an important role and can bring major satisfaction to the winners, the U-17 World Cup primarily aims to develop professional athletes. With these initial competitions, the stars of tomorrow can forge their characters and learn the basic norms of working together. The experience serves both for their professional and social development.

FIFA started the competition in 1985. Many people will be surprised to know that the teams are different than those in the World Cup. Learn all there is to know about the U-17 in our post today!

History of the FIFA U-17 World Cup

This world cup began in the aftermath of a positive response to the U-20 World Cup, which started in 1977. The first edition of the U-17 took place in the year 1985. Initially, the age limit was capped at 16 years, but officials increased it to 17 years, in 1991.

Since the first edition in China, many teams (that nobody ever believed would win) have tasted victory. The Nigeria national u-17 team has won the tournament the most.

Trailing behind the African team is Brazil with three titles. After Brazil is Mexico and Ghana, with two titles each.

Other unexpected teams, such as the Soviet Union– now Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Switzerland have also won the World Cup. Meanwhile, France and England are the only European countries to have won the tournament. However, Spain made it to second place on four occasions.

A possible explanation for these results looks into the early physical development of the young players. More often than not, physical development has more to do with performance than technique in youth tournaments. In fact, similar results appear in U-20 tournaments as well but they couldn’t be more different in professional competitions.

Brazil 2019

The 2019 Brazil FIFA U-17 World Cup began on October 26 until November 17. Only players who were born in 2002 and up, can participate in the competition.

Twenty-four teams from five continents will compete in a total of 52 matches for the victory. Furthermore, the teams that reach the final will have fought their way through six matches.

Unlike the 2014 Brazil World Cup or the 2019 CONMEBOL Copa América, the U-17 World Cup matches are disputed in smaller stadiums. The Brazilian federation is actually responsible for organizing the matches in a way that doesn’t interrupt or disturb the professional leagues. The U-17 World Cup events take place in:

• Brasilia.
• Gama.
• Goiania.
• Cariacica.

FIFA U-17: Women’s World Cup

The increasing popularity of women’s soccer in recent years has led to a growing number of tournaments. One of these tournaments is the U-17 Women’s World Cup, which FIFA created in 2008.

In the Women’s tournament, a total of 16 teams face off– the host team and the 15 qualifying teams. So far there have been six editions of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup:

• 2018 New Zealand: North Korea beat the United States for victory.
• 2010 Trinidad and Tobago: in the tournament’s second edition, South Korea took the title after beating Japan in the final.
• 2012 Azerbaijan: France beat North Korea in penalty shoot-outs and took home the cup.
• 2014 Costa Rica: Japan beat Spain in the final to claim victory.
• 2016 Jordan: North Korea makes a record by being the only team to repeat victory after winning the final against Japan.
• 2018 Uruguay: Spain defeats Mexico in the final and takes home the cup.

The next Women’s tournament will be 2020 India while the Men’s will play in 2021, location TBA. But one thing is certain: as long as international youth tournaments continue, soccer fans can bet on cheering on new stars.