FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup

FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup

The trophy awarded, base changed in 2012.
Organiser(s)	FIFA
Founded	2002;24 years ago (2002)
Region	International
Teams	24 (finals)
Related competitions	FIFA U-20 World Cup FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup
Current champions	North Korea (3rd title)
Most championships	Germany   North Korea   United States (3 titles each)
Website	fifa.com/u20womensworldcup
2026 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup

The FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup is an international association football tournament, organized by FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), for national teams of women under the age of 20. The tournament is held in even-numbered years. It was first held in 2002 as the FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship with an upper age limit of 19. In 2006, the age limit was raised to the current 20. The event was renamed as a World Cup since the 2008 competition, making its name consistent with FIFA's other worldwide competitions for national teams.

Starting with the 2010 edition, tournaments held in years immediately preceding the FIFA Women's World Cup are awarded as part of the bidding process for the Women's World Cup. In those years, the U-20 Women's World Cup serves as a test event for the host nation of the Women's World Cup, a role similar to that of the former FIFA Confederations Cup in the men's game.

The current champions are North Korea, who won their third title at the 2024 tournament in Colombia.

Qualification

Each continental governing body has its own qualifying tournament, but Africa does not determine a champion.

Confederation	Qualifier
AFC (Asia)	AFC U-20 Women's Asian Cup
CAF (Africa)	African U-20 Women's World Cup qualification
CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean)	CONCACAF Women's U-20 Championship
CONMEBOL (South America)	CONMEBOL Sub 20 Femenino
OFC (Oceania)	OFC U-20 Women's Championship
UEFA (Europe)	UEFA Women's U-19 Championship

History

The first women's world championship at the youth level, held as the 2002 FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship, with an age limit of 19, was hosted by Canada. The final, held at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, drew a surprisingly large crowd of 47,000 to watch the hosts play the United States. The US defeated Canada 1–0 on a golden goal by Lindsay Tarpley. Canada's Christine Sinclair was the adidas Golden Ball recipient, as tournament MVP, and the Golden Shoe (10 goals) winner. The 2004 FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship was held in Thailand. For the second time in a row, the current holders of the senior World Cup, Germany, won the youth competition. The Golden Ball went to Brazilian star, Marta, while for the second time the Golden Boot went to a Canadian, Brittany Timko. In 2006, FIFA raised the women's youth championship age limit to 20 to match the men's, beginning with the 2006 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship, held in Russia from 17 August through 3 September. The competition was held in four Moscow stadiums (Dinamo, Lokomotiv, Podmoskovie Stadium and Torpedo Stadion) and one in St. Petersburg (Petrovskiy Stadion). Korea DPR won the final 5–0 over China PR. The 2008 FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship was held in Chile, from 20 November to 7 December 2008. ^[1] Six years after winning their first championship at the youth level in 2002, the United States reclaimed the trophy with a 2–1 win over defending champions Korea DPR. The Golden Ball and the Golden Shoe went to Sydney Leroux of the United States. The 2010 edition of the tournament was held in Germany from 13 July to 1 August 2010. The host nation defeated Nigeria in the final to claim its second championship. It was the first time that an African nation had advanced as far as the semifinals. It was also the first tournament in which four different confederations were represented in the semifinals. The Golden Ball and Golden Shoe awards both went to Alexandra Popp of Germany.

Third-place match between Japan and Nigeria at the 2012 edition

The 2012 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was played in Japan from 19 August to 8 September, ^[2] after initially having a hosting bid from Vietnam withdrawn and a bid from Uzbekistan rejected. The Golden Ball went to Dzsenifer Marozsán of Germany, while the Golden Shoe went to Kim Un-hwa of North Korea. The 2014 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was held in Canada from 5–25 August 2014, who reprised its role as host after a Zimbabwean bid withdrew leaving the Canadian bid unopposed. The Golden Ball and Golden Shoe awards both went to Asisat Oshoala of Nigeria.

The 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was expected to be held in South Africa, but due to the country's withdrawal, a new host was chosen on 19 March 2015, and it was Papua New Guinea. ^[3] The 2018 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup was held in France from 5–24 August 2018; a year later France would host the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. The Golden Ball and Golden Shoe awards both went to Patricia Guijarro of Spain.

The 2020 edition was initially to be hosted jointly by Costa Rica and Panama in August 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic it has been postponed to January 2021, to be solely hosted by Costa Rica. Due to having the highest COVID-19 cases and deaths in the region, Panama withdrew from hosting this event along with the 2022 Central American and Caribbean Games. ^[4] The tournament was initially postponed to 2021, subject to further monitoring. ^[5] On 17 November 2020, FIFA announced that the 2020 edition of the tournament would be cancelled. ^[6] Following the cancellation of the 2020 edition, Costa Rica were appointed as hosts of the tournament in 2022. ^[6]

In 2024 the tournament expanded from 16 to 24 teams. ^[7] Colombia was selected as host on 23 June 2023. ^[8] Poland was selected as host on 17 December 2023. ^[9]

Results

Tournament name

• 2002–2004: "FIFA U-19 Women's World Championship"
• 2006: "FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship"
• 2008–present: "FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup"

Keys

• aet: after extra time
• p: penalty shoot-out

Ed.	Year	Host	Final			Third place game			Num. teams
			Champions	Score	Runners-up	Third place	Score	Fourth place
1	2002	Canada	United States	1–0( g.g. )	Canada	Germany	1–1 (4–3 p)	Brazil	12
2	2004	Thailand	Germany	2–0	China	United States	3–0	Brazil	12
3	2006	Russia	North Korea	5–0	China	Brazil	0–0( a.e.t. ) (6–5 p)	United States	16
4	2008	Chile	United States	2–1	North Korea	Germany	5–3	France	16
5	2010	Germany	Germany	2–0	Nigeria	South Korea	1–0	Colombia	16
6	2012	Japan	United States	1–0	Germany	Japan	2–1	Nigeria	16
7	2014	Canada	Germany	1–0( a.e.t. )	Nigeria	France	3–2	North Korea	16
8	2016	Papua New Guinea	North Korea	3–1	France	Japan	1–0	United States	16
9	2018	France	Japan	3–1	Spain	England	1–1 (4–2 p)	France	16
10	2022	Costa Rica	Spain	3–1	Japan	Brazil	4–1	Netherlands	16
11	2024	Colombia	North Korea	1–0	Japan	United States	2–1( a.e.t. )	Netherlands	24
12	2026	Poland							24

Map of countries' best results

Debut of national teams

Year	Debuting teams
	Teams	No.	Cum.
2002	Australia,   Brazil,   Canada,   Chinese Taipei,   Denmark,   England,   France,   Germany,   Japan,   Mexico,   Nigeria,   United States	12	12
2004	China,   Italy,   Russia,   South Korea,   Spain,   Thailand	6	18
2006	Argentina,   DR Congo,   Finland,   New Zealand,   North Korea,    Switzerland	6	24
2008	Chile,   Norway	2	26
2010	Colombia,   Costa Rica,   Ghana,   Sweden	4	30
2012	None	0	30
2014	Paraguay	1	31
2016	Papua New Guinea,   Venezuela	2	33
2018	Haiti,   Netherlands	2	35
2022	None	0	35
2024	Austria,   Cameroon,   Fiji,   Morocco	4	39
2026	New Caledonia,   Poland,   Portugal	3	42

Teams reaching the top four

Team	Titles	Runners-up	Third place	Fourth place
Germany	3 (2004, 2010, 2014)	1 (2012)	2 (2002, 2008)	—
North Korea	3 (2006, 2016, 2024)	1 (2008)	—	1 (2014)
United States	3 (2002, 2008, 2012)	—	2 (2004, 2024)	2 (2006, 2016)
Japan	1 (2018)	2 (2022, 2024)	2 (2012, 2016)	—
Spain	1 (2022)	1 (2018)	—	—
Nigeria	—	2 (2010, 2014)	—	1 (2012)
China	—	2 (2004, 2006)	—	—
France	—	1 (2016)	1 (2014)	2 (2008, 2018)
Canada	—	1 (2002)	—	—
Brazil	—	—	2 (2006, 2022)	2 (2002, 2004)
South Korea	—	—	1 (2010)	—
England	—	—	1 (2018)	—
Netherlands	—	—	—	2 (2022, 2024)
Colombia	—	—	—	1 (2010)

Comprehensive team results by tournament

Legend

• 1st — Champions
• 2nd — Runners-up
• 3rd — Third place
• 4th — Fourth place
• QF – Quarter-finals
• R2 – Round 2 (since 2024: knockout round of 16)
• R1 – Round 1 (group stage)
•  •  — Did not qualify
•  ×  — Did not enter / Withdrew / To be determined
• XX — Country did not exist or national team was inactive
•    — Hosts
• Q – Qualified for upcoming tournament

For each tournament, the flag of the host country and the number of teams in each finals tournament (in brackets) are shown.

Team	Confederation	2002 (12)	2004 (12)	2006 (16)	2008 (16)	2010 (16)	2012 (16)	2014 (16)	2016 (16)	2018 (16)	2022 (16)	2024 (24)	2026 (24)	Total
Argentina	CONMEBOL	•	•	R1	R1	•	R1	•	•	•	•	R2		4
Australia	AFC [A]	QF	QF	R1	•	•	•	•	•	•	R1	R1		5
Austria	UEFA	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	R2	•	1
Brazil	CONMEBOL	4th	4th	3rd	QF	R1	R1	R1	QF	R1	3rd	QF		11
Cameroon	CAF	×	×	•	•	×	•	×	•	•	•	R2		1
Canada	CONCACAF	2nd	QF	R1	R1	•	R1	QF	R1	•	R1	R2	Q	10
Chile	CONMEBOL	•	•	•	R1	•	•	•	•	•	•	•		1
China	AFC	•	2nd	2nd	R1	•	R1	R1	•	R1	•	•		6
Chinese Taipei	AFC	R1	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•		1
Colombia	CONMEBOL	•	•	•	•	4th	•	•	•	•	QF	QF		3
Costa Rica	CONCACAF	•	•	•	•	R1	•	R1	•	•	R1	R1	Q	5
Denmark	UEFA	QF	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	1
DR Congo	CAF	×	•	R1	R1	•	•	×	•	×	•	•		2
England	UEFA	QF	•	•	QF	R1	•	R1	•	3rd	•	•	Q	6
Fiji	OFC	•	×	•	×	×	×	×	×	•	•	R1		1
Finland	UEFA	•	•	R1	•	•	•	R1	•	•	•	•	•	2
France	UEFA	R1	•	QF	4th	R1	•	3rd	2nd	4th	QF	R2	Q	10
Germany	UEFA	3rd	1st	QF	3rd	1st	2nd	1st	QF	QF	R1	QF	•	11
Ghana	CAF	×	×	•	•	R1	R1	R1	R1	R1	R1	R1		7
Haiti	CONCACAF	•	×	•	•	×	•	×	•	R1	•	×	•	1
Italy	UEFA	•	R1	•	•	•	R1	•	•	•	•	•	Q	3
Japan	AFC	QF	•	•	QF	R1	3rd	•	3rd	1st	2nd	2nd		8
Mexico	CONCACAF	R1	•	R1	R1	QF	QF	R1	QF	R1	QF	R2	Q	11
Morocco	CAF	•	•	•	×	×	•	•	×	•	•	R1		1
Netherlands	UEFA	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	QF	4th	4th	•	3
New Caledonia	OFC	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	Q	1
New Zealand	OFC	•	×	R1	R1	R1	R1	QF	R1	R1	R1	R1		9
Nigeria	CAF	R1	QF	QF	QF	2nd	4th	2nd	R1	QF	QF	R2		11
North Korea	AFC	•	•	1st	2nd	QF	QF	4th	1st	QF	×	1st		8
Norway	UEFA	•	•	•	R1	•	QF	•	•	•	•	•	•	2
Papua New Guinea	OFC	×	•	•	×	×	•	•	R1	•	•	•		1
Paraguay	CONMEBOL	•	•	•	•	•	•	R1	•	R1	•	R1		3
Poland	UEFA	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	Q	1
Portugal	UEFA	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	Q	1
Russia	UEFA	•	QF	QF	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	×	×	2
South Korea	AFC	•	R1	•	•	3rd	QF	QF	R1	•	R1	R2		7
Spain	UEFA	•	R1	•	•	•	•	•	QF	2nd	1st	QF	Q	6
Sweden	UEFA	•	•	•	•	QF	•	•	R1	•	•	•	•	2
Switzerland	UEFA	•	•	R1	•	R1	R1	•	•	•	•	•	•	3
Thailand	AFC	•	R1	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•		1
United States	CONCACAF	1st	3rd	4th	1st	QF	1st	QF	4th	R1	R1	3rd	Q	12
Venezuela	CONMEBOL	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	R1	•	•	R1		2

1. Australia represented OFC before 2006.

Results by confederation

   — Hosts are from this confederation

Overview

Confederation	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Top 8	Top 16
AFC	4	5	3	1	20	3
UEFA	4	3	4	4	31	5
CONCACAF	3	1	2	2	16	3
CAF	0	2	0	1	8	2
CONMEBOL	0	0	2	3	10	3
OFC	0	0	0	0	3	0

AFC

	2002 (12)	2004 (12)	2006 (16)	2008 (16)	2010 (16)	2012 (16)	2014 (16)	2016 (16)	2018 (16)	2022 (16)	2024 (24)	2026 (24)	Total
Teams	2	3	3	3	3	4	3	3	3	3	4	4	38
Top 16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	3		3
Top 8	1	1	2	2	2	3	2	2	2	1	2		20
Top 4	0	1	2	1	1	1	1	2	1	1	2		13
Top 2	0	1	2	1	0	0	0	1	1	1	2		9
1st													4
2nd													5
3rd													3
4th													1

CAF

	2002 (12)	2004 (12)	2006 (16)	2008 (16)	2010 (16)	2012 (16)	2014 (16)	2016 (16)	2018 (16)	2022 (16)	2024 (24)	2026 (24)	Total
Teams	1	1	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	4	4	26
Top 16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	2		2
Top 8	0	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	1	1	0		8
Top 4	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	0	0	0	0		3
Top 2	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0		2
1st													0
2nd													2
3rd													0
4th													1

CONCACAF

	2002 (12)	2004 (12)	2006 (16)	2008 (16)	2010 (16)	2012 (16)	2014 (16)	2016 (16)	2018 (16)	2022 (16)	2024 (24)	2026 (24)	Total
Teams	3	2	3	3	3	3	4	3	3	4	4	4	39
Top 16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	3		3
Top 8	2	2	1	1	2	2	2	2	0	1	1		16
Top 4	2	1	1	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	1		8
Top 2	2	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0		4
1st													3
2nd													1
3rd													2
4th													2

CONMEBOL

	2002 (12)	2004 (12)	2006 (16)	2008 (16)	2010 (16)	2012 (16)	2014 (16)	2016 (16)	2018 (16)	2022 (16)	2024 (24)	2026 (24)	Total
Teams	1	1	2	3	2	2	2	2	2	2	5	4	28
Top 16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	3		3
Top 8	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	1	0	2	2		10
Top 4	1	1	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	0		5
Top 2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0
1st													0
2nd													0
3rd													2
4th													3

OFC

	2002 (12)	2004 (12)	2006 (16)	2008 (16)	2010 (16)	2012 (16)	2014 (16)	2016 (16)	2018 (16)	2022 (16)	2024 (24)	2026 (24)	Total
Teams	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	2	1	1	2	2	15
Top 16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	0		0
Top 8	1	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0		3
Top 4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0
Top 2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0
1st													0
2nd													0
3rd													0
4th													0

UEFA

	2002 (12)	2004 (12)	2006 (16)	2008 (16)	2010 (16)	2012 (16)	2014 (16)	2016 (16)	2018 (16)	2022 (16)	2024 (24)	2026 (24)	Total
Teams	4	4	5	4	5	4	4	4	5	4	5	6	54
Top 16	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	5		5
Top 8	3	2	3	3	2	2	2	3	5	3	3		31
Top 4	1	1	0	2	1	1	2	1	3	2	1		15
Top 2	0	1	0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1	0		7
1st													4
2nd													3
3rd													4
4th													4

Awards

Below are the award winners. ^[10]

Golden Ball Awarded to the best player of the tournament. Tournament Winner 2002 Canada Christine Sinclair 2004 Thailand Marta 2006 Russia Ma Xiaoxu 2008 Chile Sydney Leroux 2010 Germany Alexandra Popp 2012 Japan Dzsenifer Marozsán 2014 Canada Asisat Oshoala 2016 Papua New Guinea Hina Sugita 2018 France Patricia Guijarro 2022 Costa Rica Maika Hamano 2024 Colombia Choe Il-son 2026 Poland

Julie Johnston, Dzsenifer Marozsán and Hanae Shibata with their awards at the 2012 edition. Golden Boot The topscorer award. Tournament Winner Goals 2002 Canada Christine Sinclair 11 2004 Thailand Brittany Timko 7 2006 Russia Ma Xiaoxu 5 2008 Chile Sydney Leroux 5 2010 Germany Alexandra Popp 10 2012 Japan Kim Un-hwa 7 2014 Canada Asisat Oshoala 7 2016 Papua New Guinea Mami Ueno 5 2018 France Patricia Guijarro 6 2022 Costa Rica Inma Gabarro 8 2024 Colombia Choe Il-son 6 2026 Poland

Golden Glove Awarded to the best goalkeeper. Tournament Winner 2008 Chile Alyssa Naeher 2010 Germany Bianca Henninger 2012 Japan Laura Benkarth 2014 Canada Meike Kämper 2016 Papua New Guinea Mylène Chavas 2018 France Sandy MacIver 2022 Costa Rica Txell Font 2024 Colombia Femke Liefting 2026 Poland

FIFA Fair Play Trophy Tournament Winner 2002 Canada   Japan 2004 Thailand   United States 2006 Russia   North Korea   Russia [note 1] 2008 Chile   United States 2010 Germany   South Korea 2012 Japan   Japan 2014 Canada   Canada 2016 Papua New Guinea   Japan 2018 France   Japan 2022 Costa Rica   Japan 2024 Colombia   Japan 2026 Poland

See also

• FIFA Women's World Cup
• FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup
• FIFA U-20 World Cup

Notes

1. The archived FIFA page for the 2006 event identifies a single winner, Russia. ^[11] The November 2006 FIFA Magazine and the event's Report and Statistics document identify two winners, Russia and North Korea. ^{[12] [13]} No explanation of this discrepancy is readily available.

References

1. "FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Chile 2008". FIFA. Archived from the original on 16 November 2007. Retrieved 26 November 2007.
2. "Match Schedule FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Japan 2012" (PDF). FIFA.com. 30 July 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 March 2013.
3. "Sport: PNG Football wants to host U20 Women's World Cup". Radio New Zealand International. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
4. "Costa Rica 'ready to host the entire tournament' as Panama bows out as U-20 Women's World Cup host". The Tico Times. 26 July 2020.
5. "Bureau of the FIFA Council decisions on FIFA events". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 12 May 2020.
6. "Update on FIFA Club World Cup 2020 and women's youth tournaments". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 17 November 2020. Retrieved 24 December 2020.
7. FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup from 16 to 24 teams.
8. "FIFA Council appoints United States as host of new and expanded FIFA Club World Cup". FIFA.com. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
9. "FIFA Council appoints Chile and Poland as hosts of FIFA youth competitions". FIFA . 17 December 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
10. "Statistical Kit" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. p. 34. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 August 2014. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
11. FIFA.com. "FIFA U-20 Women's World Championship Russia 2006 - Awards". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017.
12. Technical Study Group (2006). FIFA U-20 Women‘s World Championship Russia 2006 Technical Report and Statistics (PDF) (Report). FIFA. Archived (PDF) from the original on 24 February 2025.
13. Heitz, George (November 2006). "Korea DPR – supreme world champions" (pdf). FIFA Magazine. FIFA. p. 49. Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 October 2025. Retrieved 29 October 2025.

External links

• Official website
• Women U-19/U-20 World Cup at the RSSSF