The FIFA U-20 World Cup is the biennial football world championship tournament for FIFA members’ men's national teams with players under the age of 20. The competition has been staged every two years since the inaugural tournament in 1977 when it was hosted by Tunisia[1] under the tournament name of FIFA World Youth Championship until 2005.[2] In 2007 the name was changed to its present form. FIFA bills the men's Under-20 World Cup as "the tournament of tomorrow's superstars."[3] Diego Maradona, Lionel Messi and Paul Pogba are previous winners of the official player of the tournament award, and Erling Haaland was the top scorer at the 2019 edition. The current title holder is Uruguay, which won its first title at the 2023 tournament in Argentina.

FIFA U-20 World Cup
The trophy awarded since 2013
Organising bodyFIFA
Founded1977; 47 years ago (1977)
RegionWorldwide
Number of teams24 (finals)
Related competitionsFIFA World Cup
Current champions Uruguay (1st title)
Most successful team(s) Argentina (6 titles)
WebsiteFIFA U-20 World Cup
2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup

History

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In the twenty-three editions of the tournament held, twelve nations have won the title. Argentina U20 is the most successful team with six titles, followed by Brazil U20 with five titles. Portugal U20 and Serbia U20 have both won two titles (with the latter winning once as Yugoslavia U20), while Ghana U20, Germany U20, Spain U20, France U20, England U20, Ukraine U20, Russia U20 (as the USSR U20) and Uruguay U20 have won the title once each.[citation needed]

A corresponding event for women's teams, the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, began in 2002 with the name "FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship" and an age limit of 19. The age limit for the women's competition was changed to 20 beginning with the 2006 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship, and the competition was renamed as a "World Cup" in 2007 in preparation for the 2008 event. The next edition is planned to be held in 2025 in Chile.

Qualification

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24 national teams appear in the final tournament. 23 countries, including the defending champion, have to qualify in the youth championships of the six confederations. The host country automatically qualifies.

Confederation Championship
AFC (Asia) AFC U-20 Asian Cup
CAF (Africa) U-20 Africa Cup of Nations
CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean) CONCACAF Under-20 Championship
CONMEBOL (South America) South American Youth Football Championship
UEFA (Europe) UEFA European U-19 Championship
OFC (Oceania) OFC Under 20 Qualifying Tournament

Results

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  • 1977–2005: "FIFA World Youth Championship"
  • 2007–present: "FIFA U-20 World Cup"
  • a.e.t.: after extra time
  • p: match won on penalties
Ed. Year Host Final Third place match
teams
  Champions Score   Runners-up   Third place Score Fourth place
1 1977   Tunisia  
Soviet Union
2–2 (a.e.t.)
(9–8 p)
 
Mexico
 
Brazil
4–0  
Uruguay
16
2 1979   Japan  
Argentina
3–1  
Soviet Union
 
Uruguay
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(5–3 p)
 
Poland
16
3 1981   Australia  
West Germany
4–0  
Qatar
 
Romania
1–0  
England
16
4 1983   Mexico  
Brazil
1–0  
Argentina
 
Poland
2–1 (a.e.t.)  
South Korea
16
5 1985   Soviet Union  
Brazil
1–0 (a.e.t.)  
Spain
 
Nigeria
0–0 (a.e.t.)
(3–1 p)
 
Soviet Union
16
6 1987   Chile  
Yugoslavia
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(5–4 p)
 
West Germany
 
East Germany
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(3–1 p)
 
Chile
16
7 1989   Saudi Arabia  
Portugal
2–0  
Nigeria
 
Brazil
2–0  
United States
16
8 1991   Portugal  
Portugal
0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–2 p)
 
Brazil
 
Soviet Union
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(5–4 p)
 
Australia
16
9 1993   Australia  
Brazil
2–1  
Ghana
 
England
2–1  
Australia
16
10 1995   Qatar  
Argentina
2–0  
Brazil
 
Portugal
3–2  
Spain
16
11 1997   Malaysia  
Argentina
2–1  
Uruguay
 
Republic of Ireland
2–1  
Ghana
24
12 1999   Nigeria  
Spain
4–0  
Japan
 
Mali
1–0  
Uruguay
24
13 2001   Argentina  
Argentina
3–0  
Ghana
 
Egypt
1–0  
Paraguay
24
14 2003   United Arab Emirates  
Brazil
1–0  
Spain
 
Colombia
2–1  
Argentina
24
15 2005   Netherlands  
Argentina
2–1  
Nigeria
 
Brazil
2–1  
Morocco
24
16 2007   Canada  
Argentina
2–1  
Czech Republic
 
Chile
1–0  
Austria
24
17 2009   Egypt  
Ghana
0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–3 p)
 
Brazil
 
Hungary
1–1 (a.e.t.)
(2–0 p)
 
Costa Rica
24
18 2011   Colombia  
Brazil
3–2 (a.e.t.)  
Portugal
 
Mexico
3–1  
France
24
19 2013   Turkey  
France
0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–1 p)
 
Uruguay
 
Ghana
3–0  
Iraq
24
20 2015   New Zealand  
Serbia
2–1 (a.e.t.)  
Brazil
 
Mali
3–1  
Senegal
24
21 2017   South Korea  
England
1–0  
Venezuela
 
Italy
0–0 (a.e.t.)
(4–1 p)
 
Uruguay
24
22 2019   Poland  
Ukraine
3–1  
South Korea
 
Ecuador
1–0 (a.e.t.)  
Italy
24
23 2023   Argentina  
Uruguay
1–0  
Italy
 
Israel
3–1  
South Korea
24
24 2025   Chile 24

Teams reaching the top four

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Team Titles Runners-up Third place Fourth place
  Argentina 6 (1979, 1995, 1997, 2001, 2005, 2007) 1 (1983) 1 (2003)
  Brazil 5 (1983, 1985, 1993, 2003, 2011) 4 (1991, 1995, 2009, 2015) 3 (1977, 1989, 2005)
  Portugal 2 (1989, 1991) 1 (2011) 1 (1995)
  Serbia1 2 (1987, 2015)
  Uruguay 1 (2023) 2 (1997, 2013) 1 (1979) 3 (1977, 1999, 2017)
  Ghana 1 (2009) 2 (1993, 2001) 1 (2013) 1 (1997)
  Spain 1 (1999) 2 (1985, 2003) 1 (1995)
  Russia2 1 (1977) 1 (1979) 1 (1991) 1 (1985)
  Germany3 1 (1981) 1 (1987)
  England 1 (2017) 1 (1993) 1 (1981)
  France 1 (2013) 1 (2011)
  Ukraine 1 (2019)
  Nigeria 2 (1989, 2005) 1 (1985)
  Italy 1 (2023) 1 (2017) 1 (2019)
  Mexico 1 (1977) 1 (2011)
  South Korea 1 (2019) 2 (1983, 2023)
  Qatar 1 (1981)
  Japan 1 (1999)
  Czech Republic 1 (2007)
  Venezuela 1 (2017)
  Mali 2 (1999, 2015)
  Poland 1 (1983) 1 (1979)
  Chile 1 (2007) 1 (1987)
  Romania 1 (1981)
  East Germany 1 (1987)
  Republic of Ireland 1 (1997)
  Egypt 1 (2001)
  Colombia 1 (2003)
  Hungary 1 (2009)
  Ecuador 1 (2019)
  Israel 1 (2023)
  Australia 2 (1991, 1993)
  United States 1 (1989)
  Paraguay 1 (2001)
  Morocco 1 (2005)
  Austria 1 (2007)
  Costa Rica 1 (2009)
  Iraq 1 (2013)
  Senegal 1 (2015)
1 = includes results representing Yugoslavia
2 = includes results representing USSR
3 = includes results representing West Germany

Performances by continental zones (as of 2023)

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Map of the best results for each country

All continental confederations except for the OFC (Oceania) have made an appearance in the final match of the tournament. To date, CONMEBOL (South America) leads with twelve titles, followed by UEFA (Europe) with ten titles and CAF (Africa) with one title. Teams from the AFC (Asia) and CONCACAF (North America, Central America, Caribbean) have made the tournament final four times, but were defeated by strong UEFA sides. No current OFC member has ever made the semifinals; Australia reached the semifinals as an OFC member in 1991 and 1993, finishing fourth on both occasions, before the country joined the AFC in 2006.

Confederation (continent) Performances
Winners Runners-up Third Fourth
CONMEBOL (South America) 12 titles: Argentina (6), Brazil (5), Uruguay (1) 8 times: Brazil (4), Uruguay (2), Argentina (1), Venezuela (1) 7 times: Brazil (3), Chile (1), Colombia (1), Ecuador (1), Uruguay (1) 6 times: Uruguay (3), Argentina (1), Chile (1), Paraguay (1)
UEFA (Europe) 10 titles: Portugal (2), Serbia1 (2), England (1), France (1), West Germany (1), Spain (1), Ukraine (1), USSR (1) 7 times: Spain (2), Czech Republic (1), West Germany (1), Italy (1), Portugal (1), USSR (1) 10 times: England (1), East Germany (1), Hungary (1), Rep. of Ireland (1), Israel (1), Italy (1), Poland (1), Portugal (1), Romania (1), USSR (1) 7 times: Austria (1), England (1), France (1), Italy (1), Poland (1), Spain (1), USSR (1)
CAF (Africa) 1 title: Ghana (1) 4 times: Ghana (2), Nigeria (2) 5 times: Mali (2), Egypt (1), Ghana (1), Nigeria (1) 3 times: Ghana (1), Morocco (1), Senegal (1)
AFC (Asia) None 3 times: Japan (1), Qatar (1), South Korea (1) None 3 times: South Korea (2), Iraq (1)
CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean) None 1 time: Mexico (1) 1 time: Mexico (1) 2 times: Costa Rica (1), United States (1)
OFC (Oceania) None None None 2 times: Australia2 (2)
1 = as Yugoslavia (1987).
2 = as part of OFC (currently in AFC since 2006).

Awards

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The following awards are now presented:

  • The Golden Ball is awarded to the most valuable player of the tournament;
  • The Golden Boot is awarded to the top goalscorer of the tournament;
  • The Golden Glove is awarded to the most valuable goalkeeper of the tournament;
  • The FIFA Fair Play Trophy is presented to the team with the best disciplinary record in the tournament.
Tournament Golden Ball Golden Boot Goals Golden Glove FIFA Fair Play Trophy
  1977 Tunisia   Vladimir Bessonov   Guina 4 Not Awarded   Brazil
  1979 Japan   Diego Maradona   Ramón Díaz 8   Poland
  1981 Australia   Romulus Gabor   Mark Koussas 4   Australia
  1983 Mexico   Geovani   Geovani 6   South Korea
  1985 Soviet Union   Paulo Silas   Sebastián Losada 3   Colombia
  1987 Chile   Robert Prosinečki   Marcel Witeczek 7   West Germany
  1989 Saudi Arabia   Bismarck   Oleg Salenko 5   United States
  1991 Portugal   Emílio Peixe   Sergei Sherbakov 5   Soviet Union
  1993 Australia   Adriano   Henry Zambrano 3   England
  1995 Qatar   Caio   Joseba Etxeberria 7   Japan
  1997 Malaysia   Nicolás Olivera   Adaílton 10   Argentina
  1999 Nigeria   Seydou Keita   Pablo Couñago 5   Croatia
  2001 Argentina   Javier Saviola   Javier Saviola 11   Argentina
  2003 United Arab Emirates   Ismail Matar   Eddie Johnson 4   Colombia
  2005 Netherlands   Lionel Messi   Lionel Messi 6   Colombia
  2007 Canada   Sergio Agüero   Sergio Agüero 6   Japan
  2009 Egypt   Dominic Adiyiah   Dominic Adiyiah 8   Esteban Alvarado   Brazil
  2011 Colombia   Henrique Almeida   Henrique Almeida 5   Mika   Nigeria
  2013 Turkey   Paul Pogba   Ebenezer Assifuah 6   Guillermo de Amores   Spain
  2015 New Zealand   Adama Traoré   Viktor Kovalenko 5   Predrag Rajković   Ukraine
  2017 South Korea   Dominic Solanke   Riccardo Orsolini 5   Freddie Woodman   Mexico
  2019 Poland   Lee Kang-in   Erling Haaland 9   Andriy Lunin   Japan
  2023 Argentina   Cesare Casadei   Cesare Casadei 7   Sebastiano Desplanches   United States
  2025 Chile

Records and statistics

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "CBC.ca". Archived from the original on 22 October 2007.
  2. ^ Tolmich, Ryan (18 May 2023). "Lionel Messi, Diego Maradona, Erling Haaland and the superstars who have dominated the U20 World Cup". Goal.
  3. ^ "Indonesia stripped of hosting Under-20 World Cup by FIFA". Associated Press News. 29 March 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
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  NODES
Association 2
Note 1