# Canada names squad for first FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival > Canada Soccer selected 14 players for a new FIFA youth tournament built around short matches, six performance tiers and continued play through the final day. - Canonical URL: https://newsverum.com/en/news/canada-u15-world-cup-squad-azerbaijan-2026 - Publisher: Newsverum - Section: Sports - Country: Canada - Published: 2026-10-28T11:03:55+00:00 - Updated: 2026-10-28T11:03:55+00:00 - Event / data period: 2026-10-23 - Other editions: [Türkçe](https://newsverum.com/tr/news/canada-u15-world-cup-squad-azerbaijan-2026.md) Canada Soccer named a 14-player men’s under-15 squad on October 23 for the inaugural FIFA U-15 World Cup and Festival in Baku, Azerbaijan. The tournament, scheduled for October 24–30, gives the age group its first FIFA event under a format built around repeated short matches rather than a conventional elimination bracket. Canada’s announcement listed five qualification fixtures in Group P against Guinea, Guatemala, Singapore, American Samoa and Honduras, with all five scheduled over three days at the Hovsan Competition Complex. The roster spans Canadian professional academies and clubs abroad. Goalkeepers Xavier McIlkenny-McDonald and Jaskaran Singh were listed with Toronto FC and Vancouver Whitecaps FC. The defenders included Shawn Couto and Mohamed Toure of CF Montréal, Quincy Green of LA Galaxy, Elliott Kim of Vancouver Whitecaps and Dionte Marhong of River Plate. Midfielders represented Cavalry FC, Pescara Calcio, AZ Alkmaar, CF Montréal and Aston Villa, while forwards Yele Dazirignon and Yannick Seri Baye were listed with Vancouver Whitecaps and FC Metz. The release provides club affiliations, but it does not describe selection criteria or individual performance records. The event departs from the usual 11-a-side youth tournament. Teams play eight against eight, on a 68-by-47-metre pitch, in two 20-minute halves. Substitutions are unlimited, kick-ins replace throw-ins and offside is applied only beyond lines 14 metres from goal. These adjustments are designed to create more touches and match exposure for young players. Canada Soccer’s technical leader said the tournament would expose players to varied opponents and styles early in their development; the format’s structure also ensures teams continue playing after the initial group stage. After the qualification round, results place teams into one of six performance tiers. There are no knockout eliminations: each team is due to play through to the final matchday, and each tier has its own winner. The champion of the top tier is designated the inaugural World Cup and Festival champion. FIFA says the format is meant to provide international competition to associations for which qualification for established FIFA tournaments can be difficult, while giving players and coaches experience against different football cultures. The design spreads competitive opportunities across the field rather than sending only the highest-ranked group winners into a single title bracket. That development emphasis is reflected in the event’s scale and scheduling. FIFA describes a six-matchday programme with nearly 1,000 games and up to 20 simultaneous fixtures. Canada Soccer said the team would play five matches in the opening stage, with its qualification schedule concentrated across October 24, 25 and 26. The roster size matches FIFA’s maximum 14-player delegation. The Baku event is the first boys’ edition; FIFA says a girls’ tournament is planned for 2027, followed by separate boys’ and girls’ competitions from 2028. The format is therefore a pilot for a recurring international youth-development event, rather than a one-off Canadian selection. For the Canadian squad, the early group stage is an unusually dense international test. The team was scheduled to meet opponents from Africa, Central America and Asia before playing American Samoa and Honduras to complete qualification. Canada Soccer’s schedule called for three games on the second day and two on the third, demanding recovery between short matches as well as tactical adjustment. The source release did not identify a captain, starting lineup or detailed training camp, so the selection announcement establishes who will represent Canada and the published schedule, but not how the coaching staff plans to rotate players. The tournament also changes what a successful finish means. Each tier crowns a winner, which gives teams a competitive objective after qualification even if they are outside the top bracket. That can sustain match opportunities for the full field and make the event useful for player assessment, though FIFA and Canada Soccer had not yet published results when the squad was announced. Canada’s initial assignment was clear: complete five group matches, earn a tier placement and continue competing through the closing day. The event’s value will depend on how well the promised volume of meaningful play is delivered across teams, not only on the Tier A title. ## Data ### Canada U-15 tournament timeline Canada roster announcement and the FIFA tournament stages. Methodology: Schedule and format were compiled from Canada Soccer and FIFA releases; stages not yet played are shown as scheduled events. | date | label | description | status | |---|---|---|---| | 2026-10-23 | Canada squad announced | Canada Soccer selected 14 players for its men’s U-15 team. | occurred | | 2026-10-24 | Tournament begins | The inaugural FIFA U-15 World Cup & Festival began in Baku. | occurred | | 2026-10-30 | Final matchday | Finals across six performance tiers are scheduled at Baku Crystal Hall. | scheduled | Sources: , · Download data: [JSON](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/canada-u15-world-cup-squad-azerbaijan-2026/data/canada-u15-tournament-timeline?lang=en&format=json) · [CSV](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/canada-u15-world-cup-squad-azerbaijan-2026/data/canada-u15-tournament-timeline?lang=en&format=csv) ### Canada squad and tournament format Roster and format figures published by Canada Soccer and FIFA. Methodology: Roster size and Canada’s group fixtures come from Canada Soccer; pitch, halves, tiers and event scale come from FIFA’s format explanation. The match total retains FIFA’s approximate qualifier. | Measure | Count | Detail | |---|---|---| | Canada squad | 14 | players, men’s U-15 | | Canada qualifying fixtures | 5 | Group P | | Performance tiers | 6 | each with a winner | | FIFA event matches | 1000 | nearly 1,000 across six matchdays | | Players on pitch | 8 | per team; 68 × 47 metre field | | Half duration | 20 | minutes per half | Sources: , · Download data: [JSON](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/canada-u15-world-cup-squad-azerbaijan-2026/data/u15-roster-and-tournament-format?lang=en&format=json) · [CSV](https://newsverum.com/api/v1/articles/canada-u15-world-cup-squad-azerbaijan-2026/data/u15-roster-and-tournament-format?lang=en&format=csv) ## Sources - [Canada Soccer]() (Source checked: 2026-10-28; Published: 2026-10-23) - [FIFA]() (Source checked: 2026-10-28; Published: 2026-09-18) --- Cite the canonical URL above. [Editorial standards and corrections](https://newsverum.com/en/editorial)