Also in August, Canada’s Para Soccer team as well as Canada’s men’s national team will be in camp, with the latter assembling at the end of the month before what will be a busy September for Canada’s two national “A” teams.

Already in 2010, Canada has held national camps for five different youth age teams – men’s U-20, men’s U-17, women’s U-20, women’s U-18, and women’s U-17. The addition of two U-15 teams – girls in early August and boys later this year – marks seven different national youth teams in 2010.

Add in the activity for the men’s full national, men’s U-23/Olympic, women’s full national and Para-Soccer teams, that makes 11 different national soccer teams in play this 2010 season.

Following this week’s BMO National Championships Nutrilite All Stars, Canada’s men’s U-17 team will assemble in Sherbrooke under head coach Sean Fleming. The players will be selected directly from the competition and remain in Sherbrooke from 25 July to 1 August. This team is in its early preparations for the 2011 CONCACAF Men’s Under-17 Championship.

Also following the weekend, Canada’s women’s U-17 team will hold its next camp in Santiago, Chile under head coach Bryan Rosenfeld. The camp runs 25 July to 3 August. This team has already won the 2010 CONCACAF Women’s Under-17 Championship (March in Costa Rica) and is currently preparing for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup Trinidad and Tobago 2010 (September 2010).

At the end of July, Canada’s women’s U-15 team will group in Sunrise, FL, USA under coach David Benning. This camp will run 30 July to 9 August. Finally, Canada’s men’s U-20 team will meet in Spain for a camp and competition from 9-21 August. The men’s U-20 team is coached by Valerio Gazzola.

Men’s International Friendlies
In September, Canada’s men’s national team will host two Men’s International Friendly matches – 4 September against Peru in Toronto and 7 September against Honduras in Montréal. Tickets to both matches are available now (Toronto via Ticketmaster / 416.872.5000 / ticketmaster.ca; Montréal via Admission / 1.800.361.4595 / Admission.com). Canada’s women’s national team, meanwhile, will face reigning FIFA Women’s World Cup champion Germany on 15 September in Germany.

Mixed results for Canada’s national teams
This weekend was a busy one for Canada’s various national team programs. Training camps and international friendlies took place around the world, and while the results were mixed, the experience gained was invaluable.

The men’s U-17 team took part in a tournament in Martinique, coming away with a morale-boosting, first-place finish. A 2-1 victory over the host country followed a 1-0 victory over Guadeloupe and a 3-1 victory over Martinique’s U-16 team. Canadian captain Bryce Alderson of Kitchener, Ont., was named the tournament’s most valuable player.

The men’s U-20 team took part in the 2010 Internationale Cor Groenewegen Toernooi in Groenewegen, Netherlands, where they finished 11th out of 12 teams. The tournament featured a mix of international and club teams, where each team played five matches in the group phase before taking part in a classification match on Monday afternoon.

Canada finished the group phase having lost all five matches, scoring one goal and conceding eight. Although the results were not what one would have hoped for, this type of international experience is exactly what our young players need in order to develop.

The women’s national team, meanwhile, held a 10-day training camp in Maryland, which they capped by playing the Washington Freedom of the Women’s Professional Soccer league. Despite going behind 3-1, the women battled back to tie the game 3-3 with goals from Christina Julien, Christine Sinclair and Jodi-Ann Robinson.

The women are preparing for a friendly with former World Cup winners Norway on June 3, as well as the 2010 CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup, which serves as the qualification tournament for the FIFA Women’s World Cup being held in Germany in 2011.

Finally, the men’s national team travelled to Buenos Aires to take on powerhouse Argentina.

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It will be a big weekend for Canada’s national soccer teams, leading up to the televised Canada-Argentina match this Monday May 24 on Rogers Sportsnet. Four national teams are in action this weekend – both national men’s and national women’s teams plus the men’s U-20 and men’s U-17 teams.

Canada’s men’s national team is in Buenos Aires this week in advance of its historic match against Argentina on May 24. The Monday match kicks off at 15.30 local time and will be broadcast live on Rogers Sportsnet (all four channels) at 15.30 ET / 12.30 PT. This marks the first time Canada will face the two-time FIFA World Cup champion.

The Canada-Argentina match is also pretty big news in Argentina where an expected sold-out Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti will house some 65,000 fans. The match will be played as part of the bicentenary anniversary of the Revolución de Mayo, the early 19th century “May Revolution” that helped form Argentina into an independent nation. It is also one of Argentina’s final matches before the team departs for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa.

Canada’s women’s national team, meanwhile, is currently training in Gaithersburg, MD, USA. The team’s 10-day camp runs May 18-27 and includes a Sunday exhibition match against Women’s Professional Soccer team Washington Freedom. The Sunday May 23 match kicks off at 17.00 ET in Fairfax, VA. Fans can follow the match live via Twitter In English and In French.

The Canadian women are preparing for a big international fixture on June 3 in Hamar, Norway against the one-time FIFA Women’s World Cup and Women’s Olympic champion Norway. The international match is part of Canada’s preparations for the 2010 CONCACAF Women’s Gold Cup – the North American qualification route to the FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011.

As for Canada’s youth teams, Canada’s men’s U-20 team is training in and around Alkmaar, Netherlands while Canada’s men’s U-17 team in training in Fort-de-France, Martinique. This weekend, Canada’s men’s U-20 team takes part in a tournament against other international and local clubs (Internationale Cor Groenewegen Toernooi). In all, Canada will play five 40-minute mini games on May 22 and 24. Canada’s men’s U-17 team, meanwhile, is taking part in an international tournament of its own, with matches against Guadeloupe on May 22 and a yet-to-be-determined opponent on May 23.

Beyond this weekend, the next major international match for Canada will be the men’s national team match against Venezuela on Saturday May 29. That match will also be broadcast on Rogers Sportsnet. The May 29 match will cap off a two-week period in which five Canadian national teams – the above four plus Canada’s women’s U-18 team – will have played 16 opponents in 14 days.

“We played a strong Japan team in our first international match,” said Canadian national head coach Valerio Gazzola. “It was a good professional performance by our team, but we still have lots of work to do.”

Canada’s starting XI featured Julien Latendresse-Lévesque in goal, Gino Mauro, Amine Meftouh, Francesco Augustin and James Chalk at defence, Ethan Gage, Matt Stinson, Russell Teibert and Abdoulaye Sylla at midfield, and Jaineil Hoilett and Jerome Baker up front.

The play between both sides started out pretty even, although Canada suffered an injury in just the fourth minute of play. Teibert came off with a leg injury and was replaced in the midfield by Liam Connon.

Canada may have carried the better portion of the play in the first half. As the half-hour mark approached, Sylla had a good chance and then Baker had a great shot. In both attempts, the Japanese goalkeeper was up to the task. Japan countered with a couple of chances in the last 15 minutes.

In the second half, it may have been Japan that carried the better portion of the play. Canada had a couple of chances early in the second half, but then Japan countered with a couple of its own, including a good strike from 25 yards out that went high in the 55th minute.

Canada made four more changes in the second half. Chalk was replaced by Doneil Henry in the 59th minute, Meftouh was replaced by Darren Jones in the 68th minute, Baker was replaced by Liam Kelly in the 73rd minute, and Sylla was replaced by Justin Maheu in the 79th minute.

Canada’s men’s U-20 team features players born 1991 or later. Canada is currently preparing for the 2011 CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship. The Canadian team will be in Netherlands from May 13-24.

Jackson of Mississauga, ON wins the award for the first time.

“This is a fantastic achievement for Simeon,” said Canadian national head coach Stephen Hart. “He had an excellent club season and performed admirably at the national level. Full congratulations to Simeon.”

In 2009, the 22-year old striker helped Gillingham FC earn a promotion to League One in England. In the second half of the 2008-09 season, he scored nine goals in 25 League Two appearances, including three goals in the final two playoff matches to earn Gillingham FC the promotion for the 2009-10 season. It was on 23 May 2009 in front of 53,706 fans at Wembley Stadium that Jackson scored the winning goal of a Gillingham FC 1:0 victory over Shrewsbury to secure the promotion. Jackson scored on a header in the 91st minute of play.

Just one week later, he made his international debut with the Canadian national team in a 1:0 victory over Cyprus in Larnaka. Again, Jackson scored the lone goal of the match, this one the first of his international career.

Over the summer, Jackson represented Canada at the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup. He helped Canada reach the quarter-final stage. He was called up again in November for a pair of friendly matches in Europe, thus earning him seven national appearances by year’s end.

As for the start of the 2009-10 England League One season, Jackson has been in fine form through the first 18 games of the season. He has scored 10 goals including an opening-day hat trick against Swindon Town on 8 August. He scored two additional goals in League Cup matches against Plymouth and Premiership opponent Blackburn. The 25 August goal against Blackburn was Jackson’s second of the year against a Premiership opponent; his first was a 4 January 2009 goal against Aston Villa in FA Cup action.

Sinclair is female selection for Canadian Players of the Year award
Christine Sinclair is the female selection for the 2009 Canadian Players of the Year award. Sinclair was honoured in a vote shared by Canadian media (50%) and Canadian coaches who have taken the Canadian Soccer Association’s national course at the B and A levels (50%).

Sinclair of Burnaby, BC wins the award for the fifth-consecutive year. Her 2009 co-winner – a selection from the men’s national team – will be announced on Friday.

“Christine is a superb leader for our national team,” said national head coach Carolina Morace. “I would like to pass along my full congratulations to her on yet another fine season.”

In 2009, Sinclair joined FC Gold Pride for the inaugural season of Women’s Professional Soccer. She led the team with six goals (tied for fifth in the league), 58 shots (third in the WPS) and 27 shots on goal (third in the WPS). Three of her goals came in three consecutive starts from 31 May to 17 June. She won WPS Player of the Week honours in Week 8 and was selected to the year-end WPS All-Star Team.

At the 2009 WPS All-Star Game on 30 August, Sinclair scored both second-half goals in a 4:2 victory over Umeå IK in St. Louis , MO.

At the international level, Sinclair scored four goals in seven games, leading her country in goals scored for the ninth time in 10 seasons. In each year of her international career she has scored at a rate of more than a goal for every two games played. Her four goals came in three consecutive games as Canada finished second at the 2009 Cyprus Women’s Cup, falling 1:3 in the final to England .

Sinclair is Canada’s all-time leader with 99 goals in 132 career appearances. In 2009, Sinclair passed Charmaine Hooper for most career starts (129) and tied Andrea Neil for most career appearances (132). Sinclair is also Canada ’s all-time leader with 11,706 minutes played.

Attakora, Stewart named Canadian U-20 Players of the Year
The Canadian Soccer Association announced today that Nana Attakora and Chelsea Stewart have been named Canadian U-20 Players of the Year for the 2009 soccer season. The two stars were honoured in a vote shared by national-team coaches (50%) and Canadian coaches who have taken the Canadian Soccer Association’s national course at the B and A levels (50%).

Stewart split her 2009 international season between Canada ’s national and U-20 teams. She made six appearances at the national level under new head coach Carolina Morace, making her debut on 5 March 2009 at the Cyprus Women’s Cup. At the women’s U-20 level, she made four appearances as Canada began preparations for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Germany 2010. She served as a team captain at the U-20 level.

The defender/midfielder from The Pas, MB split her club season between Vancouver Whitecaps FC and Vanderbilt University . She played in 10 W-League games for the Whitecaps and 18 college games for Vanderbilt. She scored three goals for Vanderbilt.

As for Attakora, the North York , ON defender is now a two-time winner of the Canadian U-20 Player of the Year award. Like Stewart, he served as a Canadian captain at the U-20 level. In March, he represented Canada at the 2009 CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship. He made his 20th appearance at the U-20 level on 9 March 2009, a 2:0 victory over Mexico .

At the club level, Attakora played 20 games for Toronto FC during the 2009 Major League Soccer season. He recorded two goals and four assists. He also played in four Nutrilite Canadian Championship games, helping Toronto FC win the 2009 Voyageurs Cup.

Teibert, Raymer named Canadian U-17 Players of the Year
Canadian teenagers Russell Teibert and Abigail Raymer have been named Canadian U-17 Players of the Year for the 2009 soccer season. The two stars were honoured in a vote shared by national-team coaches (50%) and Canadian coaches who have taken the Canadian Soccer Association’s national course at the B and A levels (50%).

Raymer is a member of Canada ’s women’s U-17 team. She took part in the Canadian team’s first camp in October as the team began preparations for the 2010 CONCACAF Women’s Under-17 Championship in March. She started the 2009 season as a member of the Canadian Soccer Association’s National Training Centre in British Columbia , but also as part of Gordon Head Gold in the Lower Island Soccer Association’s 2008-09 Premier League. For the 2009-10 season, she joined the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Prospects development team.

In July, the Victoria , BC striker won a bronze medal with British Columbia at the 2009 BMO National Championships Nutrilite All Stars U-16 girls competition in Richmond , BC . It was her second medal at the national championships, having previously won a gold at the 2007 Nutrilite All Stars U-14 competition in Longueuil , QC .

As for Teibert, the Niagara Falls , ON midfielder is now a two-time winner of the Canadian U-17 Player of the Year award. He split the 2009 season between the national U-17 team and the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency side. He served as Canada ’s captain at the 2009 CONCACAF Men’s Under-17 Championship in Tijuana , Mexico . He scored Canada ’s first goal of the opening match, a 1:1 draw with Honduras . At the club level, he took part in Whitecaps Residency trips to USA (Dallas Cup), Germany and Spain . Teibert also scored one goal and added four assists in 14 matches during the United Soccer Leagues Premier Development season. He scored his first PDL goal on 5 June against the Seattle Wolves.

Canada started the match with two new faces in the starting XI. Midfielder Brandon Bonifacio replaced Shaun Saiko who was out with a one-game suspension while defender Ethan Gage replaced Nana Attakora-Gyan who did not dress because of his injury.

The first started as usual, with both sides looking for space and trying to get an early feel for the ball. Costa Rica had the first corner kick, but to no danger. It was in the 12th minute that Edwini-Bonsu struck for his third goal of the tournament. Edwini-Bonsu used his speed to outrun the Costa Rican defender on a long pass down the left side from Philippe Davies. With the ball on the line, Edwini-Bonsu decided to flirt his way into the box and found the space to score the first goal of the game.

Down 0-1, Costa Rica came back with a wide shot in the 15th minute, a shot into Adam Street’s arms in the 16th minute, and another shot into Street in the 18th minute. They came back with another shot on Street six minutes later.

Costa Rica’s work was rewarded in the 25th minute on a goal by Jorge Castro off a free kick. The free kick was awarded after Bonifacio reacted with his hands to a shot fired from close range. Canada had a long wall, but the ball fired above the wall and into the top left corner of the net.

Through the second part of the first half, Costa Rica continued to press into the Canadian end. Davies did have a shot from distance in the 30th minute that Marcus Haber tried to deflect on target with his head, but that was as close as Canada got. Costa Rica had a few half chances before Marcos Danilo Ureña smacked the crossbar in the 44th minute.

The second half started with Canada pushing forward, knowing it needed a win to advance. Edwini-Bonsu continued to create problems for the Costa Rican defence down the left side. Edwini-Bonsu danced his way into the box for chances in the 55th and 60th minutes, but both times could not create the go-ahead goal.

In the 62nd minute, coach Fonseca made his first substitution to add to the offence, inserting forward in place of defender Eddy Sidra. It was in Canada’s push forward that Costa Rica found an alley to penetrate on the return. In the 72nd minute, Ureña pushed his way in and fired the go-ahead goal for Costa Rica.

Canada came back, but as the next 20 minutes would prove, the goals would not come. Forward Igor Pisanjuk entered the game in the 75th minute for midfielder Davies and had a quick chance. Too many passes from the Canucks up front, however, pushed Haber too deep in the box.

On the counter attack, Costa Rica nearly made it 3-0 in the 80th minute. A chip shot and a neat header was saved by Street, though. Canada pushed all of its troops up front, but couldn’t cut back on the Costa Rican lead. One final shot from Costa Rica in the 90th minute hit the Canadian crossbar and stayed out.

With three points in three games, Canada finishes third in Group B at the 2009 CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship. Only the top two teams advance. A draw in its final game would not have been good enough as four Canadian points would not have been better four Trinidad & Tobago points because of the opening match loss.

The first half started with the host applying some early pressure. From there, both teams looked to make their mark, but neither side could mount any momentum. In the 11th minute, Randy Edwini-Bonsu used his speed to press on the Trinidad & Tobago goal, but his shot went wide. A few minutes thereafter, Canada had its first corner kick, but the ball was easily cleared.

In the 14th minute, Trinidad & Tobago had its first good chance after a shot rebounded off a Canadian defender. The follow-up shot, however, was sent wide of goal. Canada then had a free kick in the 16th minute, but the shot was high. In the 17th minute, Marcus Haber was booked and Trinidad & Tobago fired its free kick right into the Canadian wall.

As the first half progressed, both sides made their drives down field. In the 21st minute, a good run by the host forced Canadian goalkeeper Adam Street out of his net to make a diving stop. In the 24th minute, Shaun Saiko took a long free kick that sailed over goal.

Canada did start to build an attack for several minutes, a sequence that included a caution to opponent Robert Primus. In the 33rd minute, Saiko played a long free kick that headed on goal, but just couldn’t slow down in time for a Canadian striker to get a boot on it.

Late in the half, Trinidad & Tobago had its turn to get the home crowd standing. In the 42nd minute, Canada was very luck after Trinidad & Tobago rushed on goal and fired a low shot that dribbled just wide of the goal. Less than a minute later, Trinidad & Tobago broke through the Canadian defence again, but once again fired the shot wide.

The rest of the half played out with Canada creating a couple of chances. Edwini-Bonsu had a good run and Canada had a late corner kick, but to no avail. The second half then started with Brandon Bonifacio replacing Saiko in the midfield.

In the second half, it was much of the same with neither side taking full control of the match. Both sides had their chances, though, starting with Trinidad & Tobago in the 55th minute as the hosts danced into the Canadian box. Eddy Sidra was beat for a moment, but he recaptured his feet and had the help of goalkeeper Adam Street who deflected the ball to a sweeping Adam Straith.

In the 56th minute, Trinidad & Tobago had another good run, but again the delivery was wide. A few minutes later, Edwini-Bonsu had a great run down the right side and into the box. He managed to get a centering shot from the line, but the ball snaked through to the opposing defender who cleared it well.

In the 67th minute, Canada took a quick throw in after a quick Edwini-Bonsu run down the left side. Canada turned the throw into a centering pass that Haber headed on net. The header was directed on goal, but the goalkeeper just managed to tip the ball over the net. On the ensuing corner kick, some defensive confusion nearly led to a Canadian goal, but the ball was cleared out of danger.

In the 72nd minute, Trinidad & Tobago tried to create some danger with a free kick around the wall, but goalkeeper Adam Street was there to take away the chance. A minute later Canada had a free kick, but it still did nothing to change the score.

Finally in the 82nd minute, Trinidad & Tobago found the net after a Philippe Davies caution one minute earlier. De Silva blasted the shot to the right of the Canadian wall and into the top corner of the net, leaving goalkeeper Street with no chance on the play.

“It is important that we train on the pitch on which we are going to play,” said head coach Tony Fonseca. “The players need a good sense of the field. It is quite different from the ones we have in Canada. It is a little bit shorter and there’s not much rubber on it, so it means we have to adjust. The ball will bounce a lot more and it is a different game.”

The CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship opens Friday with group A action on the island of Tobago. Canada’s group begins play on Saturday with Mexico facing Costa Rica at 16.00 and host Trinidad & Tobago facing Canada at 18.00.

Canada will have one day off in between in match. Canada also gets the early time slot in each of its next two matches: 17.00 against Mexico on Monday 9 March and 17.00 against Costa Rica on Wednesday 11 March. Host Trinidad & Tobago will have the late slot both times: 19.00 against Costa Rica on 9 March and 19.00 against Mexico on 11 March.

The opposite group games are being played at Dwight Yorke Stadium. On Friday 6 March, Honduras faces El Salvador at 17.00 and Jamaica faces USA at 19.00. On Sunday 8 March, it is El Salvador against Jamaica at 16.00 and USA against Honduras at 18.00. On Tuesday 10 March, it is Jamaica against Honduras at 17.00 and USA against El Salvador at 19.00.

At the 2009 CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship, the top two teams from each group advance to the 13 March semi final. Those four teams also qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009. The confederation championship continues through to the 15 March final at Marvin Lee Stadium.

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‘The final camp has arrived and we are going to use it for fine tuning,’ said coach Tony Fonseca. ‘We are aware of the difficulties of the competition. The opponents are very strong and we know that there is no room for mistakes. This team is ambitious and will be ready to fight for a spot for Egypt 2009.’

The top two teams in the four-team group advance to the 13 March semi-final. They also qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009. Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago are the four teams in group B; USA, El Salvador, Jamaica and either Honduras or St. Vincent & the Grenadines are the four teams in Group A.

Canada will spend roughly one week together in Sunrise, FL to make its final preparations before the confederation championship. In Florida, Canada will play Jamaica on 27 February and USA on 1 March. The team then heads to Trinidad & Tobago where it will play the host on 7 March, Mexico on 9 March, and Costa Rica on 11 March.

The CONCACAF final is 15 March 2009 – the first confederation U-20 men’s championship since 1996. Canada won that last championship in 1996 in Saltillo, Mexico.

Canada has qualified for each of the last four FIFA U-20 World Cups, including UAE 2003 when it reached the quarter-final stage. Should Canada qualify for Egypt 2009, it will be one of two or three countries (depending if USA also qualifies) participating in its fifth-straight FIFA U-20 World Cup. Brazil has a streak of 15-straight FIFA U-20 World Cups dating back to Australia 1981; USA is trying to make it seven straight since Malaysia 1997; Canada hopes to make it five straight since Argentina 2001.

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This will be the first-ever international meeting between Canada and Cyprus. Further details on the match and the Canadian team will be announced in the coming months.

The full schedule for this summer’s 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup has yet to be announced. Twelve teams will participate in the tournament, including Canada who won the confederation championship in 2000. At the most recent CONCACAF Gold Cup in 2007, Canada reached the semi-final round before falling 1:2 to USA . Canada ’s Julian de Guzman won the tournament’s Most Valuable Player award while de Guzman, Richard Hastings and Paul Stalteri were all named All Stars.

Canada sits ninth within CONCACAF in the first FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings of the 2009 season. USA, meanwhile, maintained the top spot for the fourth-consecutive month with Mexico and Honduras in second and third place.

Canada has not played since 19 November and remains stuck on 410 points. It did, however, move up four spots on the world ranking as other countries lost points. Canada’s 410 points currently ranks 86th on the world ranking.

Canadian U20s off to Florida
Canada’s men’s U-20 team is off to Florida this Sunday for its third camp under head coach Tony Fonseca. The coach has selected 20 players for the camp which runs 25 January to 4 February. This is the team’s last camp before it regroups in March month for the 2009 CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship.

“This is a very important camp as the time is running out,” says coach Fonseca. “It will serve to give continuity to our preparations and test the players physically so they know where they stand and what we would like to see in a month’s time”

The CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship runs 6-15 March in Trinidad & Tobago. Just last week, Canada was drawn into Group B with Mexico , Costa Rica and host Trindiad & Tobago. The four Group B teams will play a round-robin series at Marvin Lee Stadium in Macoya, Trinidad & Tobago starting 6 March. The top two teams not only advance to the semi-final stage, but also qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009.

Coach Fonseca’s 20-player squad features two new players: goalkeeper Keenan Gracey of Newburgh , ON (ENG / Wigan Athletic) and Drew Beckie of Regina , SK ( USA / Real Colorado ). Amongst the returning players, 2008 Canadian U-20 Player of the Year Nana Attakora-Gyan of Orangeville , ON (CAN / Toronto FC) is included in the group.

Canada has participated in eight of the 16 FIFA U-20 World Cups, including each of the last four (Argentina 2001, UAE 2003, Netherlands 2005 and Canada 2007). While Canada did not participate in the qualification process in 2007, it did finish first in its group in 2005 ( San Pedro , Honduras ), 2003 ( Charleston , SC ) and 2001 ( Victoria , BC ).

Also of note, the 2009 CONCACAF Men’s Under-20 Championship will crown the first confederation champion since 1996. While in recent years each group qualified through separate groups, the 2009 tournament will play down to a championship match. Canada was the last CONCACAF champion in 1996 (Saltillo, Mexico).

The most recent FIFA U-20 World Cup, of course, took place in Canada this past 30 June to 22 July 2007. The FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007 set a tournament record by drawing 1,195,239 spectators for the 52-match event. It also generated $259-million in economic impact and some 469.5-million cumulative viewers from around the world.