After the conclusion of the U-20 world cup, we didn’t have to wait much longer for a new international tournament. This time, we will dive into the U-17 FIFA Men’s World Cup in Doha, Qatar.
Unlike the U-20 world cup, the players competing are younger, with U-17 featuring players under 17 years old, while the U-20’s age limit was 20. Another significant difference is that there are far more teams in the competition. Instead of the 32 teams in 8 different groups, there are now 48 teams in 12 groups.
This new, expanded format is defined by action-packed games and electrifying goals.
In the group stage, each team plays one another and the 2 teams with the highest points advance. In addition to those 24 teams, the 8 best 3rd place teams also go through to the round of 32.
The groups are diverse with 48 countries, divided into 12 groups of 4, all fighting for the glory in Doha. Here is the rundown of the country distribution amongst the groups.
In Group A: Italy, South Africa, Qatar, and Bolivia. In Group B: Japan, Portugal, Morocco and New Caledonia. Group C consists of Senegal, Croatia, Costa Rica, and the United Arab Emirates. Group D has Belgium, Argentina, Tunisia, and Fiji. Group E has Venezuela, The 3 Lions (England), Egypt and Haiti. Group F has Switzerland, South Korea, Mexico, and the Ivory Coast. Group G has Germany, Colombia, North Korea, and El Salvador. Group H consists of Brazil, Zambia, Indonesia, and Honduras. In Group I the Czech Republic fights alongside Burkina Faso, Tajikistan and our representatives, the United States of America. Group J has Ireland, Uzbekistan, Paraguay, and Panama. Group K has France, Canada, Uganda, and Chile. Finally Group L has Austria, Mali, Saudi Arabia, and New Zealand.
The Round of 32 brought many shocks and letdowns as well as electrifying performances, with jaw dropping goals to cap off a magical 32 game slate. The first team to advance to the Round of 16 was Portugal barely scraping through with a 2-1 win over Belgium. Following them to the Round of 16 was Mali who secured a comfortable 3-1 win over Zambia. The next team to advance was Switzerland who won easily over Egypt 3-1. The next team that got through after a tight game was France who beat Colombia 2-0. Argentina, who won the Men’s World Cup 3 years prior in Qatar ended up losing to Mexico on penalties 2(4) – (5)2.
In an action packed penalty shootout with a jaw-dropping 17 penalties in the shootout saw Ireland advance over Canada with a score of 1(9) – (8)1. Following the Irish was Morocco beating the USA on penalties 1(3) – (4)1. After a cagey game, Brazil also advanced over Paraguay on penalties 0(5) – (4)0. The journey of 3 Lions continued after they beat South Korea, setting the score at 2-0. Uganda barely passed by Senegal with a score of 1-0. Italy beat the Czech Republic with a 2-0 and Japan won their clash against South Africa, scoring 3-0. Heavy favorites, Germany, were upset by the African nation of Burkina Faso, losing 1-0. Unlike their neighbors who lost to England, North Korea advanced after beating Venezuela 2-1. The last 2 games saw Austria beating Tunisia 2-0 and Uzbekistan winning on penalties against Croatia 1(3) – (4)1, funnily enough, in 2022 in the Men’s World Cup, Croatia was the team upsetting other countries on penalties.
The round of 16 saw clashes between powerhouses, neighboring countries, and quieter dark horses. Burkina Faso beat their fellow African nation on penalties 1(5) – (3)-1. In a thrilling clash, Italy barely scraped through over Uzbekistan with a score of 3-2. After barely getting to the Round of 16, Portugal was supposed to have a tough time against Mexico, however the Portuguese put on a show winning 5-0 against their rival. A clash between South American giants Brazil and European giants France saw Brazil advancing on penalties 1(4) – (3)1. Switzerland comfortably took care of Ireland winning 3-1. In a battle for East Asia, North Korea and Japan faced off and the game went to penalties. Unfortunately for the North Koreans, they lost on penalties 1(4) – (5)1. The journey of The 3 Lions ended as Austria destroyed them 4-0 sending the English back home. Finally another African clash saw Morocco and Mali facing off with Morocco becoming the final team to advance after winning 3-2.
Who will win the whole tournament? Will it be U20 champions Morocco or the Joga Bonito of Brazil. Who will be crowned champion of the world. Only time will tell after the final on November 27th.
