FIFA men’s U17 World Cup increasing to 48 teams with next five to be held in Qatar

Mar 14, 2024

FIFA has announced that the next five men’s under-17 World Cups will take place in Qatar and the tournament will expand from 24 to 48 teams.

The tournament, which was founded in 1985, will also be held annually rather than biennially from 2025.

The women’s under-17 World Cups from 2025 will also become an annual competition as well as being expanded from 16 teams to 24 teams. The next five editions of the women’s under-17 World Cup will take place in Morocco.

The changes were announced ahead of the 74^th FIFA Congress, with FIFA saying that the changes: “Follow a global call for expressions of interest in hosting both competitions, with a focus on leveraging the use of existing footballing infrastructure in the interest of tournament efficiencies and sustainability.”

Germany are the holders of the men’s Under-17 World Cup after beating France in the final of the 2023 tournament in Indonesia. Spain won the most recent women’s under-17 World Cup in 2022 in India, beating Colombia in the final.

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(Alex Caparros – FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images,)

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Nnamdi Onyeagwara joined us in November 2022, initially helping us cover the World Cup before becoming a Junior News Editor in January 2023. Born in North London, Nnamdi attended Nottingham Trent University and previously worked at The Voice and the Barnet Post. Follow Nnamdi on Twitter @nnamdionye