Canada Soccer has announced a 21-player squad for the upcoming 2026 Concacaf U-20 Qualifiers in Nicaragua. CANM20 will travel to Managua, Nicaragua for four matches looking to qualify for the 2026 Concacaf U-20 Championship. Included on the roster are Whitecaps FC 2 (WFC2) defender Sahil Deo, and Whitecaps FC midfielder Liam Mackenzie. In addition, Anyole Peter from the Whitecaps FC BMO Academy was named an alternate.
Canada was drawn in Group F for the 2026 Concacaf U-20 Qualifiers alongside Nicaragua, Aruba, Martinique, US Virgin Islands. Group winners will advance to the 2026 Concacaf U-20 Championship this summer, joining the six top-ranked nations that are pre-qualified directly to the tournament. The Championship will determine Concacaf's entrants for the 2027 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Azerbaijan, as well as the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
“This important first step of the U-20 qualifying campaign is one we’re taking with great focus and intent towards the type of opponents and challenges we’ll be facing. While we’re without several players due to recent injuries and club commitments, the quality of the players we are bringing into this event, combined with the experience most of them have in these types of matches, is a testament to what we’ve been able to build over the past few years. The excellent work that has been done with the last U17 cycle, setting new standards for us at the 2025 FIFA U17 World Cup, will add strength to this talented group of 2007-born players who are facing their first Concacaf test.” - Andrew Olivieri, Canada Soccer Men’s Youth Excel Director
Canada will play US Virgin Islands on February 26, Martinique on February 28, Aruba on March 2 and Nicaragua on March 4 at Estadio Miguel Chocorrón Buitrago in Managua.
A number of key players from the December camp in Costa Rica are not available due to injury: George Booth (Reading FC), Emrick Fotsing (Vancouver FC), Josh-Duc Nteziryayo (CF Montréal), Valter Sedin (Hammarby FC). Additionally, certain players could not be made available due to club commitments ahead of the start of the 2026 MLS Season: Rayan Elloumi (Vancouver Whitecaps FC) and Aleksandr Guboglo (CF Montréal).
