| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Karl |
Posted - Oct 04 2005 : 06:35:10 AM
FIFA U-17 World Championship
Players, Referees & Coaches
(FIFA.com) 07 Sep 2005
Players
From all the U-17 WC's, 67 players went on to participate in the FIFA World Cup™. Two also played in a WC final match and came out on top: Frenchman Emmanuel Petit in 1998 (France v. Brazil) and Brazil's Ronaldinho in 2002 (Germany v. Brazil). Petit took part in the U-17 WC in 1987 and Ronaldinho triumphed in the 1997 final. Just one former U-17 WC player, Petit, has scored in a World Cup final (France v. Brazil 1998).
The youngest ever player is Nigerian Peter Ogaba, who played in the FIFA U-17 World Championship in 1987 at the tender age of 12 years and 10 months.
Alongside the numerous outfield players who went on to further fame and fortune are the goalkeepers who have since claimed their place in the football hall of fame: Al Deayea (KSA), Bosnich (AUS), Buffon (ITA) and Iker Casillas (ESP) all bear witness to the importance of the tournament for young goalkeepers.
Referees
The U-17 WC has also served as a springboard for referees , some of whom officiated at important matches during subsequent FIFA World Cups - Said Belqola from Morocco was the first African referee appointed for a World Cup final (1998, France v. Brazil; he sadly passed away after a long illness in June 2002); South African Achmat Salie also officiated at this final. England's Philip Sharp was an assistant referee for the Germany v. Brazil final in 2002. The honour of participating in a final was also bestowed upon Costa Rican assistant referee Berny Ulloa Morera when he officiated Argentina v. Germany in 1986.
Coaches
As for the coaches, Nigeria's Sebastian Brodrick-Imasuen coached teams at 4 different tournaments and won in 1985. Roy Rees (USA) and Les Scheinflug (AUS) also coached teams at 4 different tournaments but failed to wina title.
Several U-17 WC coaches went on to bring their experience to bear in FIFA World Cup™ matches. Craig Brown, Scotland (U-17 1989 and WC 1998), Victor Pua, Uruguay (U-17 1999 and WC 2002) and Rene Simoes, Brazil (U-17 2001 with Trinidad & Tobago and WC 1998 with Jamaica) are the only ones to have also coached at the FIFA World Cup™.
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| 4 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Karl |
Posted - Oct 04 2005 : 06:56:40 AM
FIFA U-17 World Championship
Host Countries & Competition Format
(FIFA.com) 07 Sep 2005
Host Countries
China, Canada, Scotland, Italy, Japan, Ecuador, Egypt, New Zealand, Trinidad & Tobago and Finland - FIFA's Under-17 World Championship has been staged on every continent.
Competition Format
The formula of the teenage tournament has always aimed to give all continents an equal chance, especially in this developing age group. Since the first world tournament in 1985, three teams from each confederation and one from Oceania have been allowed to qualify in order to give the national associations from each confederation the opportunity to flex their muscles against their contemporaries from all corners of the globe.
From 1985 to 1993, matches were played during two 40-minute halves (extra time was ten minutes each way). In 1995 in Ecuador, the standard duration of matches was increased to the traditional format of 45 minutes per half (with 15 minutes per half in extra time).
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| Karl |
Posted - Oct 04 2005 : 06:54:15 AM
FIFA U-17 World Championship
Competition Background
U.S. player Gonzalez in action with Costa Rica's Waston.
(REUTERS) Juan Carlos Ulate
(FIFA.com) 07 Sep 2005
Since its inception 18 years ago, the FIFA U-17 World Championship, which will return to South America in 2005 (Peru) for the first time in 10 years, has made stops all over the world: Africa (1x in Egypt), Asia (2x in China PR and Japan), Oceania (1x in New Zealand), North America (1x in Canada), the Caribbean (1x in Trinidad & Tobago), South America (1x in Ecuador), and Europe (3x Scotland, Italy and Finland).
A total of 54 associations have taken part in the U-17 WC to date and 1993 even saw the participation of a united Czech and Slovakian team. Of the 18 associations that have qualified just once for the tournament, only the Côte d'Ivoire, German DR, Hungary, RCS, Scotland and Soviet Union made it to the second round.
The 2003 edition of the tournament in Finland welcomed debutants Cameroon, Sierra Leone, Yemen and the hosts Finland to the FIFA U-17 World Championship fold.
The Oceanian confederation has been represented once in a U-17 WC final match: in 1999, Australia lost 8-7 to Brazil in a penalty shoot-out.
As for the number of times that teams have taken part, the USA (10x) are practically evergreens. They lead Australia and Brazil (each 9x) and Argentina (8x), all of whom are a step ahead of the other participants.
Throughout the history of the tournament, only Brazil have won the trophy twice in a row (1997 in Egypt and 1999 in New Zealand).
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| Karl |
Posted - Oct 04 2005 : 06:40:07 AM
FIFA U-17 World Championship
We are the Champions!
(FIFA.com) 07 Sep 2005
With three titles in the under-17 age group , Brazil lead the all-time ranking. Four out of ten tournaments have been dominated by Ghana and Nigeria (two wins each). Brazil have made it to the final on four occasions (1995, 1997, 1999, and 2003), winning three times (in 1997, 1999 and 2003). Ghana reached the final four times in a row (1991, 1993, 1995 and 1997), winning twice (1991 and 1995). Nigeria also took part in four finals (1985, 1987, 1993 and 2001), winning in 1985 and 1993.
YEAR
HOST
FINAL
WINNER
1985
China PR
Nigeria - West Germany 2:0 (1:0)
Nigeria
1987
Canada
Soviet Union - Nigeria 4:2 pso
Soviet Union
1989
Scotland
Saudi Arabia - Scotland 5:4 pso
Saudi Arabia
1991
Italy
Ghana - Spain 1:0 (0:0)
Ghana
1993
Japan
Nigeria - Ghana 2:1 (1:0)
Nigeria
1995
Ecuador
Ghana - Brazil 3:2 (2:0)
Ghana
1997
Egypt
Brazil - Ghana 2:1 (0:1)
Brazil
1999
New Zealand
Brazil - Australia 8:7 pso
Brazil
2001
Trinidad & Tobago
France - Nigeria 3:0 (1:0)
France
2003
Finland
Brazil - Spain 1:0 (1:0)
Brazil
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| Karl |
Posted - Oct 04 2005 : 06:39:06 AM
FIFA U-17 World Championship
Match-makers
(FIFA.com) 07 Sep 2005
After the FIFA World Cup™ and the FIFA World Youth Championship (U-20), the FIFA U-17 World Championship is the third oldest FIFA competition. The tournament has always been played with 16 teams.
Since the inaugural tournament in China, 320 matches have been hosted under the auspices of the U-17 WC. The FIFA U-17 World Championship Finland 2003 provided the backdrop for the 300th match when Finland met Mexico in Helsinki on 16 August.
Brazil have contested the most matches (45) in the U-17 WC, followed by Argentina (38), USA and Australia (36), and Nigeria (35). The tournament's most successful teams are likewise multiple winners Brazil (29 wins, 9 draws, 7 defeats) and Nigeria (23 wins, 8 draws, 4 losses).
All in all, 10 different teams have qualified for the 10 final matches. A selection of 23 sides, from every confederation, has reached the semi-finals, indicating a considerably level playing field in this age group.
In 1987, 1989 and 1999 the final match was decided on penalties and on each occasion, a team from a different confederation came out on top. All other finals were decided in regular time.
Throughout the 10 editions of the U-17 WC, teams from the same confederation have met in the final match only once, with Ghana meeting Nigeria in the 1993 U-17 final. The first inter-continental contenders were Germany and Nigeria in 1985. Brazil reached the final three times in a row (1995, 1997 and 1999) and are still the only team to successfully defend the title (1999).
The highest accumulative audience total for a FIFA U-17 World Championship was registered in China PR in 1985 (1,231,000), at an average of 38,469 spectators per match. On six occasions, 80,000 people have formed the biggest crowd at a U-17 WC match; five times in in China PR in 1985 and 1997 in Egypt for the Egypt v. Germany match.
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