CHICAGO (June 10, 2022) – U.S. Under-20 Men’s Youth National Team head coach Mikey Varas has selected the 20-player roster that will represent the USA at the 2022 Concacaf Under-20 Championship, set for June 18-July 3 in Honduras.
The USA will take aim at one of four berths to the 2022 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Indonesia and attempt to qualify for the Olympic Games for the first time since 2008. The U.S. is also looking to win its third straight Concacaf title after taking home its first two championships at this age level in 2017 and 2018.
As the tournament’s top seed, the U.S. was drawn into Group E and opens the competition against Saint Kitts and Nevis on Saturday, June 18 (4 p.m. ET), faces regional rival Canada on Monday, June 20 (8:30 p.m. ET) and finishes the group stage against Cuba on Wednesday, June 22 (8:30 p.m. ET).
GOALKEEPERS (2): Christopher Brady (Chicago Fire FC; Naperville, Ill.), Antonio Carrera (FC Dallas; Frisco, Texas
DEFENDERS (6): Noah Allen (Inter Miami CF; Miramar, Fla.), Brandan Craig (Philadelphia Union; Philadelphia, Pa.), Mauricio Cuevas (Club Brugge/BEL; Los Angeles, Calif.), Marcus Ferkranus (LA Galaxy; Santa Clarita, Calif.), Michael Halliday (Orlando City SC; Apopka, Fla.), Jalen Neal (LA Galaxy; Lakewood, Calif.)
MIDFIELDERS (9): Paxten Aaronson (Philadelphia Union; Medford, N.J.), Alejandro Alvarado Jr. (FC Vizela/POR; Los Angeles, Calif.), Caden Clark (New York Red Bulls; Wayzata, Minn.) Daniel Edelman (New York Red Bulls; Warren, N.J.), Diego Luna (Real Salt Lake; Sunnyvale, Calif.), Jack McGlynn (Philadelphia Union; Middle Village, N.Y.), Rokas Pukstas (Hajduk Split/CRO; Sillwater, Okla.), Niko Tsakiris (San Jose Earthquakes; Saratoga, Calif.), Obed Vargas (Seattle Sounders FC; Anchorage, Alaska)
FORWARDS (3): Cade Cowell (San Jose Earthquakes; Ceres, Calif.), Quinn Sullivan (Philadelphia Union; Philadelphia, Pa.), Tyler Wolff (Atlanta United FC; Braselton,Ga.)
Midfielder Obed Vargas will join the team in Honduras following the conclusion of the group stage.
Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2003 are age-eligible for the Concacaf U-20 Championship and Varas selected 14 players born in 2003, eight born in 2004 and two born in 2005. The roster features players from 11 clubs, including eight from Major League Soccer, led by four from the Philadelphia Union. Three players are based abroad in Belgium, Croatia and Portugal. Twelve states are represented on the roster, with seven players coming from California.
Midfielder Caden Clark and forward Cade Cowell both have previous experience with the senior USMNT as the pair received call-ups to the full team’s December training camp in Carson, Calif. Cowell made his senior international debut in the USMNT’s friendly vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Defender Mauricio Cuevas is the lone player with Concacaf World Cup qualifying experience, as he helped the U-17 MYNT reach a record 17th FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2019. Midfielder Rokas Pukstas played for the U.S. at the 2019 Concacaf U-15 Boys’ Championship, helping the team to reach the semifinals.
Midfielder Alejandro Alvarado Jr. is the only player receiving his first U-20 MYNT call-up for World Cup qualifying. Every other player has appeared in at least one other training camp since the cycle kicked off in November 2021, led by four call-ups for midfielders Paxten Aaronson, Caden Clark, Daniel Edelman, Diego Luna and Jack McGlynn as well as forward Quinn Sullivan.
The Concacaf U-20 Championship features 20 teams – 16 divided into four groups of four, and four who have already advanced to the Round of 16 via pre-tournament qualifying.
The top three finishers in the four groups will advance to the Round of 16 and join four teams already qualified for the knockout round. From there, the teams will play a single-elimination tournament with the four semifinalists qualifying for the FIFA U-20 World Cup and the two finalists qualifying for the 2024 Olympics.
All three of the USA’s group stage games will be played at Estadio Nacional in Tegucigalpa, Honduras’ capital city. San Pedro Sula’s Estadio Morazan and Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano will also serve as venues for the competition.
Four alternates will travel with the U.S. to Honduras to train with the team prior to the tournament: goalkeeper Alexander Borto (Fulham/ENG), defender Jaziel Orozco (Real Salt Lake) plus midfielders Jackson Hopkins (D.C. United) and Tarun Karumanchi (UCLA). All four players will depart camp before the tournament, barring any injuries.