FIFA U-17 World Cup 2025: Expanded Format, Host Nation, and Tournament Details

The FIFA U-17 World Cup is set to return in 2025 with significant changes, including an expanded team lineup and a fresh tournament format. The competition, scheduled to be held in Qatar from November 3 to 27, will take place shortly after the FIFA Arab Cup, further solidifying Qatar’s growing presence in global football events.

FIFA Confirms Dates and Format

While the dates for the tournament had been tentatively decided, FIFA officially approved them during its council meeting on March 5.

Originally launched in 1985 with just 16 participating teams, the FIFA U-17 World Cup expanded to 24 teams in 2007. In a historic move, the 2025 edition will feature 48 nations, marking the largest expansion in the tournament’s history.

New Tournament Structure

With the expansion comes a revamped format. The 48 teams will be divided into four mini-tournaments, each featuring 12 teams.

• Each mini-tournament will have three groups consisting of four teams, competing in a round-robin format.
• The winner of each group and the best-performing second-placed team will advance to the knockout stage within the mini-tournament.
• The knockout rounds will include semi-finals and a final to determine the winner of each mini-tournament.
• The four victorious teams will then move on to the overall tournament’s semi-finals, followed by a third-place match and the grand final.

This unique structure aims to provide young talents with more high-stakes match experience on the world stage.

Global Representation: Confederation Quotas

The expansion has reshaped qualification slots, offering increased representation for multiple regions. While UEFA (Europe) continues to secure the highest number of spots, Africa has seen a significant boost in its allocations.

• AFC (Asia): 9 (including host nation Qatar)
• CAF (Africa): 10
• CONCACAF (North America, Central America, and the Caribbean): 8
• CONMEBOL (South America): 7
• OFC (Oceania): 3
• UEFA (Europe): 11

Teams Already Qualified for the 2025 Edition

Twelve teams have already secured their spots in the tournament, including host nation Qatar. The other teams that have confirmed qualification through continental competitions include:

• Oceania (OFC): Fiji, New Caledonia, New Zealand
• North America (CONCACAF): Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, USA

Qatar Gears Up for Another Global Football Showcase

Qatar, known for successfully hosting the FIFA World Cup 2022, is set to welcome the world’s top young footballers once again. The event will provide a global platform for emerging talents and continue to showcase the country’s state-of-the-art sporting infrastructure.

H.E. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Qatar’s Minister of Sports and Youth and chairman of the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) for both tournaments, expressed enthusiasm for the event: