Chile national under-20 football team

Chile national under-20 football team, also known as Chile Sub-20 or La Rojita, is part of the Federación de Fútbol de Chile. The U-20 team is considered to be the breeding ground for future Chile national football team players. The Chile U-20 national team has participated in seven U-20 World Cups Chile 1987, Qatar 1995, Argentina 2001, Netherlands 2005, Canada 2007, Turkey 2013, and Chile 2025.

Chile
Shirt badge/Association crest
NicknameLa Rojita (The Little Red One)
AssociationFederación de Fútbol de Chile
ConfederationCONMEBOL (South America)
Head coachNicolás Córdova
FIFA codeCHI
First colours
Second colours
First international
 Chile 4–1 Bolivia 
(Santiago, Chile; 14 March 1951)
Biggest win
 Chile 7–0 Honduras 
(Doetinchem, Netherlands; 11 June 2005)
Biggest defeat
 Chile 0–7 Spain 
(Doetinchem, Netherlands; 15 June 2005)
FIFA U-20 World Cup
Appearances7 (first in 1987)
Best resultThird place (2007)
CONMEBOL Sub 20
Appearances30 (first in 1954)
Best resultRunners-up (1975)
Chile national under-20 football team
Medal record
FIFA U-20 World Cup
Bronze medal – third place2007 CanadaTeam
Chile national under-20 football team
Medal record
CONMEBOL Sub 20
Silver medal – second place1975 PeruNA
Bronze medal – third place1995 BoliviaNA
Chile national under-20 football team
Medal record
Premier Under-20 SuperCupNI
Gold medal – first place2000 EliteNA
Bronze medal – third place2007 EliteNA
Silver medal – second place2008 EliteNA
Chile national under-20 football team
Medal record
Maurice Revello Tournament
Silver medal – second place2008 Toulon TournamentTeam
Gold medal – first place2009 Toulon TournamentTeam

One of the best and earliest U-20 World Cup campaigns was when Chile hosted the tournament in 1987, finishing in fourth place. In the most recent 2007 U-20 World Cup the team earned a third-place position, making it Chile's most successful U-20 campaign to date.

The Chile national U-20 football team also participates in the South American Youth Championship which act as qualifier for the U-20 World Cup.[citation needed]

Chile National U-20 Football Team: World Cups

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U-20 World Cup: Chile 1987

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The first World Cup the U-20 national team gained entry came in 1987 when Chile was granted the right to host. Chile headed Group A which included Australia, Togo, and Yugoslavia. October 10, 1987 Chile faced eventual tournament winners Yugoslavia in Santiago in the presence of a crowd totaling 67,000 spectators. All of Chile's early group matches were held in Santiago at the Estadio Nacional. Chile lost the opening game by a score of 2–4, with Lukas Tudor and Camilo Pino scoring for the squad.

Chile won their second match against Togo by a score of 3–0, with Pino scoring through a penalty kick in the '8 minute of the match. Tudor scored the remaining two goals in the 32nd and 75th minute of the match.

The next game against Australia was staged in front of 75,000 people. Chile using the advantage of having support from its crowd, defeated Australia 2–0 with both goals coming from Pino in the 22nd and 52nd minutes of the match.

Chile advanced to the Quarter-Finals in second place, and later played Italy in the city of Concepción, Chile. Chile's margin of victory came with the minimum difference of a 1–0 score. The result in effect would lead ti a face-off against West Germany in the Semi-Finals. The match featured West Germany ultimately winning 4–0. The third place spot was to be played against East Germany where Chile fell on penalty kicks 3–1 after a game that had both sides drawn 1–1.[1]

Date Venue Opponents Result Score
October 10, 1987 Santiago, Chile  Yugoslavia L 2 - 4
October 13, 1987 Santiago, Chile  Togo W 3 - 0
October 17, 1987 Santiago, Chile  Australia W 2 - 0
October 21, 1987 Concepción, Chile  Italy W 1 - 0
October 23, 1987 Concepción, Chile  West Germany L 0 - 4
October 25, 1987 Santiago, Chile  East Germany D 1(1) - 1(3)

U-20 World Cup: Netherlands 2005

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June 11, 2005, Chile faced CONCACAF opponents Honduras at the De Vijverberg stadium in Doetinchem, Netherlands, in what was to be the first match pertaining to group C. Massimo Busacca from Switzerland was the referee of the match. Chile, in front of 6,800 spectators, opened the scoring in the first-half with goals from forward Parada in the 11th minute and midfielder José Pedro Fuenzalida in the 30th minute. The scoring momentum continued onto the second-half, where Fuenzalida added another goal onto his personal tally in the 53rd minute, while Matías Fernández followed with a goal of his own in the 67th. Two minutes later, in the 69th, Gonzalo Jara would also score which was followed by another strike from Parada in the 71st. Pedro Morales concluded with the last goal of the day in the 77th minute, making the final score 7–0, an impressive start for "La Rojita".[2]

Four days later, on June 15, 2005, Chile experienced a crushing blow against Spain. The match was again held at De Vijverberg, and the referee in charge was Benito Archundia from Mexico. An estimate of 6,600 spectators were in attendance with Spaniard Fernando Llorente scoring four goals. Chile, playing with ten men witnessed, fell 0–7, bringing their goal differential to zero.[3]

On June 17, 2005, at Galgenwaard Stadion in Utrecht (city), Chile competed against Morocco amid a crowd of 11,000. The referee was Australian Mark Shield. The only goal was scored by Moroccan forward Tarik Bendamou in the 47th minute.[4]

A total of three points was enough for Chile to qualify in a best third place spot for the second round and on June 22, 2005, Chile played hosts Netherlands at De Vijverberg stadium. Dutch forwards Ryan Babel, Quincy Owusu-Abeyie and Collins John would each score for the Dutch in a game finishing 3–0, thus eliminating Chile from the World Cup.[5]

Date Venue Opponents Result Score
June 11, 2005 Doetinchem, Netherlands  Honduras W 7 - 0
June 15, 2005 Doetinchem, Netherlands  Spain L 0 - 7
June 17, 2005 Utrecht, Netherlands  Morocco L 0 - 1
June 22, 2005 Doetinchem, Netherlands  Netherlands L 0 - 3

U-20 World Cup: Canada 2007

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Canada 2007 was Chile's fifth overall participation in the U-20 world youth championship. Chile opened Group A against the host nation of Canada in Toronto, with Chile winning 3–0. The game featured a Chilean side with adequate possession of the ball and attentive striking from forwards Medina, team captain Carlos Carmona, and late game substitute Jaime Grondona.[6]

The second match was against the African youth champions the Republic of Congo in Edmonton. Chile soundly defeated a ten-man squad with a score of 3–0, goals coming from striker Alexis Sánchez, Nicolás Medina and Arturo Vidal.[7]

The third game was against Austria where after 90 minutes the game ended in scoreless 0–0, the result was enough for Chile to clinch the first spot of the group.[8] In the second round, Chile went up against Portugal, who had qualified as third of their group. Chile with a goal from Vidal in the 45th minute of first half secured a pass onto the quarter-final.[9]

The quarter-final included Nigeria, where after a scoreless 90 minutes the game was to be decided in extra time. Within the next final 30 minutes of the match, Chile would win 4–0 with finishes coming off a header from Jaime Grondona, a penalty kick by Mauricio Isla after Chilean player Mathías Vidangossy was brought down in the box, a deadly counter strike finish from Isla in the 117th minute and a late finish from Vidangossy after rounding the goalkeeper in injury time.[10]

The semi-final against Argentina proved controversial where referee Wolfgang Stark would send off two Chilean players, Dagoberto Currimilla and Gary Medel. Playing with nine men proved drastic, as Chile would go on to lose 3–0.[11]

Hans Martínez[12]

Goalkeeper Christopher Toselli set a record after going 492 minutes without conceding a goal, breaking the old record of 484 minutes held by under-20 Brazilian goalkeeper Cláudio Taffarel since the 1985 World Cup.[11][13]

Alexis Sánchez, Mathías Vidangossy, Arturo Vidal, Cristián Suárez and Christopher Toselli all listed as candidates for top player of the tournament.[14]

Date Venue Opponents Result Score
July 1, 2007 Toronto, Canada  Canada W 3 - 0
July 5, 2007 Edmonton, Canada  Congo W 3 - 0
July 8, 2007 Toronto, Canada  Austria D 0 - 0
July 12, 2007 Edmonton, Canada  Portugal W 1 - 0
July 15, 2007 Montreal, Canada  Nigeria W 4 - 0
July 19, 2007 Toronto, Canada  Argentina L 0 - 3
July 22, 2007 Toronto, Canada  Austria W 1 - 0

U-20 World Cup: Turkey 2013

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Turkey 2013 marks the sixth time the Chilean U-20 team has participated in the U-20 world youth championship. The Chilean team ended the first stage of the championship in second position with 4 points, with a victory against Egypt (2-1), a draw against England (1-1), and a final defeat against Iraq (1-2). Despite the mixed results, the team advanced to the knockout stages, defeating Croatia (2-1).

Date Venue Opponents Result Score
June 23, 2013 Antalya, Turkey  Egypt W 2 - 1
June 26, 2013 Antalya, Turkey  England D 1 - 1
June 29, 2013 Antalya, Turkey  Iraq L 1 - 2
July 3, 2013 Bursa, Turkey  Croatia W 2 - 0
July 7, 2013 Istanbul, Turkey  Ghana L 3- - 4

U-20 World Cup: Chile 2025

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Chile 2025 will mark the seventh time the Chilean U-20 team has participated in the U-20 world youth championship. It will also mark second time Chile has hosted it having do it in 1987.

Competitive record

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Year Round GP W D L GS GA
Tunisia 1977Did not qualify
Japan 1979
Australia 1981
Mexico 1983
Soviet Union 1985
Chile 1987Fourth place631299
Saudi Arabia 1989Did not qualify
Portugal 1991
Australia 1993
Qatar 1995Round 1302169
Malaysia 1997Did not qualify
Nigeria 1999
Argentina 2001Round 1310248
United Arab Emirates 2003Did not qualify
Netherlands 2005Second round4103711
Canada 2007Third place7511123
Egypt 2009Did not qualify
Colombia 2011
Turkey 2013Quarterfinals521298
New Zealand 2015Did not qualify
South Korea 2017
Poland 2019
Argentina 2023
Chile 2025Round of 16410349
AzerbaijanUzbekistan 2027To be determined
Total7/2532135145157

Honours

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  • Third place (1): 2007
  • Fourth place (1): 1987

List of FIFA U-20 World Cup matches

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FIFA World Youth Championship U20 History
Year Round Score Result
1987
Round 1Chile Chile 2 – 4  YugoslaviaLose
Round 1Chile Chile 3 – 0  TogoWin
Round 1Chile Chile 2 – 0  AustraliaWin
QuarterfinalsChile Chile 1 – 0  ItalyWin
SemifinalsChile Chile 0 – 4  West GermanyLose
3rd PlaceChile Chile 1 – 1 (a.e.t.)(pen 1-3)  East GermanyDraw
1995
Round 1Chile Chile 2 – 2  JapanDraw
Round 1Chile Chile 1 – 1  BurundiDraw
Round 1Chile Chile 3 – 6  SpainLose
2001
Round 1Chile Chile 2 – 4  UkraineLose
Round 1Chile Chile 1 – 4  United StatesLose
Round 1Chile Chile 1 – 0  ChinaWin
2005
Round 1Chile Chile 7 – 0  HondurasWin
Round 1Chile Chile 0 – 7  SpainLose
Round 1Chile Chile 0 – 1  MoroccoLose
Round of 16Chile Chile 0 – 3  NetherlandsLose
2007
Round 1 Chile 3 – 0  CanadaWin
Round 1 Chile 3 – 0  CongoWin
Round 1 Chile 0 – 0  AustriaDraw
Round of 16 Chile 1 – 0  PortugalWin
Quarterfinals Chile 4 – 0 (a.e.t.)  NigeriaWin
Semifinals Chile 0 – 3  ArgentinaLose
3rd Place Chile 1 – 0  AustriaWin
2013
Round 1Chile Chile 2 – 1  EgyptWin
Round 1Chile Chile 1 – 1  EnglandDraw
Round 1Chile Chile 1 – 2  IraqLose
Round of 16Chile Chile 2 – 0  CroatiaWin
QuarterfinalsChile Chile 3 – 4 (a.e.t.)  GhanaLose
2025
Round 1Chile Chile 2 – 1  New ZealandWin
Round 1Chile Chile 0 – 2  JapanLose
Round 1Chile Chile 1 – 2  EgyptLose
Round of 16Chile Chile 1 – 4  MexicoLose

Players

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Current squad

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The following players were called up to the squad for the friendly match against Brazil on 6 June 2026.[15]

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Club
1GK José Alburquenque (2007-07-19)19 July 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Lota Schwager
1GK Gabriel Maureira (2007-02-06)6 February 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Colo-Colo
1GK Maximiliano Mateluna (2007-12-09)9 December 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Palestino

2DF Thomas Coulombe (2007-07-05)5 July 2007 (aged 18) Royal Spanish Football Federation Espanyol
2DF Martín Jiménez [es] (2008-02-06)6 February 2008 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Audax Italiano
2DF José Movillo (2006-11-08)8 November 2006 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile O'Higgins
2DF Matías Orellana (2008-05-02)2 May 2008 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Colo-Colo
2DF Esteban Páez [es] (2009-04-02)2 April 2009 (aged 17) Football Federation of Chile Universidad de Concepción
2DF Valentín Sánchez (2007-03-22)22 March 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Unión San Felipe
2DF Bruno Torres (2008-01-28)28 January 2008 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Colo-Colo
2DF Cristopher Valenzuela (2007-10-20)20 October 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Santiago Wanderers

3MF Benjamín Pérez (2007-07-22)22 July 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile O'Higgins
3MF Antonio Riquelme (2008-08-08)8 August 2008 (aged 17) United States Soccer Federation Real Salt Lake
3MF Elías Rojas (2007-11-19)19 November 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Universidad de Chile
3MF Mario Sandoval (2007-08-07)7 August 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Audax Italiano
3MF Joaquín Soto (2007-04-03)3 April 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Unión La Calera
3MF Cristóbal Villarroel (2007-02-06)6 February 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Santiago Wanderers
3MF Vicente Zenteno (2007-09-25)25 September 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Audax Italiano

4FW Yastin Cuevas [es] (2008-03-29)29 March 2008 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Colo-Colo
4FW Maximiliano Fernández (2007-11-21)21 November 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Unión La Calera
4FW Ignacio Flores (2007-02-02)2 February 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Santiago Wanderers
4FW Martín Mundaca (2007-01-08)8 January 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Coquimbo Unido
4FW Vicente Ramírez (2007-04-25)25 April 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Universidad de Chile
4FW Roberto Risnaes (2007-01-29)29 January 2007 (aged 19) Danish Football Association Copenhagen
4FW Cristian Rocha [es] (2007-05-11)11 May 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Deportes Temuco
4FW Maximiliano Rojas (2007-08-08)8 August 2007 (aged 18) Football Federation of Chile Deportes Copiapó
4FW Vicente Vargas (2007-01-06)6 January 2007 (aged 19) Football Federation of Chile Santiago Wanderers

Former squads

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Coach: Luis Ibarra Chile

 # 

Name

Pos

DOB

Club

1Guillermo VelascoGK02.06.1968Santiago Wanderers Chile
2Mauricio Soto [es]DF21.02.1969Deportes Puerto Montt Chile
3Carlos RamírezDF26.02.1968Huachipato Chile
4Hugo Cortez [es]DF03.06.1968Cobreandino Chile
5Javier MargasDF10.05.1969Colo-Colo Chile
6Luis MusrriMF24.12.1969Universidad de Chile Chile
7Raimundo TupperFW07.01.1969Universidad Católica Chile
8Sandro Navarrete [es]MF16.11.1968Huachipato Chile
9Lukas TudorFW21.02.1969Universidad Católica Chile
10Fabián EstayMF05.10.1968Universidad Católica Chile
11Pedro GonzálezFW17.10.1967Deportes Valdivia Chile
12Gerhard Reiher [es]GK21.04.1968Provincial Osorno Chile
13Miguel LatínDF27.07.1968Santiago Wanderers Chile
14Juan CarreñoFW16.11.1968Colo-Colo Chile
15Reinaldo HoffmannDF18.03.1968Colo-Colo Chile
16Héctor CabelloMF14.01.1968Deportes La Serena Chile
17Camilo PinoMF04.03.1968Cobreloa Chile
18Juan ReyesFW31.08.1967O'Higgins Chile

Coach: Leonardo Véliz Chile

 # 

Name

Pos

DOB

Club

1Carlos ToroGK02.04.1976Santiago Wanderers Chile
2Francisco FernándezDF19.08.1975Colo-Colo Chile
3Mauricio DonosoMF30.04.1976Cobreloa Chile
4Nelson GarridoDF02.12.1977Universidad Católica Chile
5Jorge VargasDF08.02.1976Universidad Católica Chile
6Dion ValleDF22.07.1977Colo-Colo Chile
7Rodrigo ValenzuelaFW27.11.1975Unión Española Chile
8Carlos BarrazaMF12.03.1976Universidad Católica Chile
9Alejandro OsorioMF24.09.1976Universidad Católica Chile
10Frank LobosMF25.09.1976Colo-Colo Chile
11Sebastián RozentalFW01.09.1976Universidad Católica Chile
12Ariel SalasGK19.10.1976Colo-Colo Chile
13Héctor TapiaFW30.09.1977Colo-Colo Chile
14Cristián UribeMF01.08.1976Huachipato Chile
15Fernando MartelMF02.10.1975Unión San Felipe Chile
16Mauricio ArosDF09.03.1976Deportes Concepción Chile
17Juan Carlos MadridFW20.10.1975Universidad Católica Chile
18Dante PoliDF15.08.1976Universidad Católica Chile

Coach: José Sulantay Chile

 # 

Name

Pos

DOB

Club

1Carlos EspinozaGK23.02.1985Deportes Puerto Montt Chile
2Edzon RiquelmeDF29.08.1985Deportes Concepción Chile
3Sebastián PáezMF13.08.1986Deportes La Serena Chile
4Sebastián MontecinosDF12.03.1986Colo-Colo Chile
5Hugo BascuñánDF11.01.1985Deportivo Italmaracaibo [es]Venezuela
6Marcelo DíazMF30.12.1986Universidad de Chile Chile
7Fernando MenesesMF27.09.1985Colo-Colo Chile
8Iván VásquezMF13.08.1985Universidad Católica Chile
9Nicolás CanalesFW27.06.1985Universidad de Chile Chile
10Pedro MoralesMF25.05.1985Huachipato Chile
11Eduardo Tudela [es]FW03.03.1986Cobreloa Chile
12Carlos AriasGK04.09.1986Universidad Católica Chile
13Felipe MuñozDF04.04.1985Colo-Colo Chile
14Matías FernándezMF15.05.1986Colo-Colo Chile
15Carlos CarmonaMF21.02.1987Coquimbo Unido Chile
16Francisco SánchezDF06.02.1985Everton Chile
17Carlos VillanuevaFW05.02.1986Audax Italiano Chile
18Gonzalo JaraDF29.08.1985Huachipato Chile
19José Pedro FuenzalidaMF22.02.1985Universidad Católica Chile
20Ricardo ParadaFW02.01.1985Universidad de Concepción Chile
21José Rosales [es]GK20.09.1985O'Higgins Chile
22Juan Gonzalo LorcaFW15.01.1985Colo-Colo Chile

Coach: José Sulantay Chile

 # 

Name

Pos

DOB

Club

1Cristopher ToselliGK15.06.1988Universidad Católica Chile
2Cristián SuárezDF06.02.1987Unión San Felipe Chile
3Mauricio IslaMF12.06.1988Universidad Católica Chile
4Eric GodoyDF26.03.1987Santiago Wanderers Chile
5Nicolás LarrondoDF04.10.1987Universidad de Chile Chile
6Gary MedelMF03.08.1987Universidad Católica Chile
7Alexis SánchezFW19.12.1988Udinese Italy
8Dagoberto CurrimillaMF26.12.1987Huachipato Chile
9Nicolás MedinaFW28.03.1987Universidad de Chile Chile
10Juan Pablo ArenasMF22.04.1987Colo-Colo Chile
11Jaime GrondonaFW15.04.1987Santiago Wanderers Chile
12Nery VelosoGK02.03.1987Huachipato Chile
13Christian SepúlvedaDF23.05.1987Unión Española Chile
14Arturo VidalDF22.05.1987Colo-Colo Chile
15Carlos CarmonaMF21.02.1987Coquimbo Unido Chile
16Gerardo CortésMF17.05.1988Colo-Colo Chile
17Hans MartínezDF04.01.1987Universidad Católica Chile
18Mathías VidangossyFW25.05.1987Villarreal Spain
19Michael SilvaFW12.03.1988Atlante Mexico
20Isaías PeraltaMF21.08.1987Unión Española Chile

Coach: Mario Salas Chile

 # 

Name

Pos

DOB

Club

1Dario MeloGK24.03.1993Palestino Chile
2Felipe CamposDF08.11.1993Palestino Chile
3Alejandro ContrerasDF03.03.1993Palestino Chile
4Valber HuertaDF26.8.1993Universidad de Chile Chile
5Igor LichnovskyDF07.03.1994Universidad de Chile Chile
6Sebastian MartínezMF06.06.1993Universidad de Chile Chile
7Christian BravoFW01.10.1993Inter Zaprešić Croatia
8Andrés RoblesDF07.05.1994Santiago Wanderers Chile
9Felipe MoraFW02.08.1993Audax Italiano Chile
10Nicolás MaturanaMF08.06.1993Universidad de Chile Chile
11Angelo HenriquezFW13.04.1994Manchester United England
12Brayan CortésGK29.05.1995Deportes Iquique Chile
13Óscar HernándezMF03.07.1994Unión Española Chile
14Bryan RabelloMF16.05.1994Sevilla Spain
15Cristián CuevasFW02.04.1995O'Higgins Chile
16César FuentesMF12.04.1993O'Higgins Chile
18Nicolás CastilloFW14.02.1993Universidad Católica Chile
19Mario LarenasDF27.06.1994Union Española Chile
20Claudio BaezaDF23.12.1993Colo-Colo Chile
21Álvaro SalazarGK24.03.1993Colo-Colo Chile

See also

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References

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Head-to-head record

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The following table shows Chile's head-to-head record in FIFA U-20 World Cup.