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Somalia national under-20 football team

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Somalia U-20
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)The Ocean Stars
AssociationSomali Football Federation
(Xiriirka Soomaaliyeed ee Kubbadda Cagta)
ConfederationCAF (Africa)
Sub-confederationCECAFA
(Central & East Africa)
Home stadiumMogadishu Stadium
First colours
Second colours
First international
 Uganda 1–2 Somalia 
(Kampala, Uganda; 14 June 1986)
Biggest defeat
 Somalia 1–8 Tanzania 
(Karatu, Tanzania; 26 November 2020)
U-20 Africa Cup of Nations
Appearances1 (first in 1987)
Best resultSemi-finals (1987)
FIFA U-20 World Cup
AppearancesNone

The Somalia national under-20 football team, nicknamed the Ocean Stars, represents Somalia in international youth football competitions. Its primary role is the development of players in preparation for the senior national team. The team competes in a variety of competitions, including the biennial FIFA U-20 World Cup and the U-20 Africa Cup of Nations, which is the top competitions for this age group.[1][2]

History

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The Somalia national under-20 football team was first established to participate in the 1987 African Youth Championship. In their debut, they achieved a remarkable feat by defeating Uganda in the first round. Although they lost to Zimbabwe in the subsequent round, Zimbabwe was disqualified for fielding ineligible players, allowing Somalia to advance to the semifinals, where they faced Nigeria. However, after this, the team did not participate in any major tournaments until the 2001 African Youth Championship, where they were disqualified in the preliminary round against Uganda. In the 2003 edition, they suffered a significant 6–0 defeat against Nigeria, one of Africa’s football powerhouses.[3]

In 2021, Somalia re-entered the international youth football scene, competing in the 2020 CECAFA U-20 Championship, which also served as a qualifier for the 2021 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations in Mauritania.[4] Despite being placed in a challenging group with Tanzania and Djibouti, they narrowly lost 2–1 to Djibouti[5] and recorded a heavy 8–1 defeat to Tanzania.[6].In 2023 Somalia did not enter to the 2023 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations qualification nor the 2025 U-20 Africa Cup of Nations qualification in 2025.[7][8]

Competitive record

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FIFA U-20 World Cup record

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FIFA U-20 World Cup record
Year Round GP W D1 L GS GA
Tunisia 1977 Did not qualify
Japan 1979
Australia 1981
Mexico 1983
Soviet Union 1985
Chile 1987
Saudi Arabia 1989
Portugal 1991
Australia 1993
Qatar 1995
Malaysia 1997
Nigeria 1999
Argentina 2001
United Arab Emirates 2003
Netherlands 2005
Canada 2007
Egypt 2009
Colombia 2011
Turkey 2013
New Zealand 2015
South Korea 2017
Poland 2019
Argentina 2023
Chile 2025
Total 0/23 0 0 0 0 0 0

1Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Somalia U20". Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  2. ^ "Somalia unveils list of U20 squad for AFCON U20 qualifiers: CECAFA Zone". 20 November 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  3. ^ "CECAFA U20 Challenge Cup: South Sudan defeat Somalia to top Group C". 25 September 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
  4. ^ "CAN 2019 : un dernier sursis pour le Cameroun ?" (in French). CamFoot. 29 September 2018.
  5. ^ "AFCON U-20 QUALIFIERS: Djibouti recover to defeat Somalia". Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations. 24 November 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  6. ^ "AFCON U-20 QUALIFIERS: Eight star Tanzania book semi-final berth". Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations. 26 November 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  7. ^ "Rwanda, Eritrea pull out as TFF settles for Arusha to host Cecafa U20 Championship". 17 November 2020. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
  8. ^ "Ethiopia to Face Uganda, South Sudan in AfCON U20 Zonal Qualifiers". 13 September 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
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