Venue(s) 7 (in 5 host cities) | ||
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Dates 24 September - 16 October Teams 24 (from 6 confederations) | ||
The 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 17th U-20 tournament, which was hosted by Egypt from 24 September to 16 October, in the cities of Cairo, Alexandria, Port Said, Suez and Ismaïlia. The tournament was initially going to take place between 10–31 July, however the 2009 Confederations Cup was played mid year resulting in both the Under 20 World Cup and the Under 17 World Cup being played towards the end of the year. The cup was won by Ghana after they defeated Brazil on penalties in the final, becoming the first African team to have won the tournament.
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Player eligibility
Only players born on or after 1 January 1989 were eligible to compete in the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Qualification
Twenty-three teams qualified for the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup. As the host team, Egypt received automatic entry to the cup, bringing the total number of teams to twenty-four for the tournament.
Allocation of teams to groups
Teams were allocated to groups on the basis of geographical spread. Teams were placed in four pots, and one team was drawn from each pot for each group. Pot 1 contained the five African teams plus one from CONMEBOL; Pot 2 contained the remaining teams from the Americas excluding one CONCACAF team; Pot 3 consisted of teams from Asia and Oceania plus the remaining CONCACAF team; Pot 4 consisted of teams from the European confederation.
Group stage
The draw for the group stages was held on 5 April 2009 at Luxor Temple. Each group winner and runner-up teams, as well as the best four third-placed teams, qualified for the first round of the knockout stage (round of 16).