Ottawa, Ontario - FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007, It’s gonna be huge.

FIFA and the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA) are pleased to announce that since ticket packages were made available to the public 12 days ago on Saturday, July 15; over 208,000 seats (40% of the stated target of 520,000) have already been sold for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007.

"We are extremely delighted with the success of our national on-sale campaign," stated Kevan Pipe, CSA’s Chief Operating Officer. "With this type of start, we are now even more confident that we can build on this momentum and reach our goal of 520,000 spectators attending the event next summer. This would break the record for the largest single-sport sporting event ever held in Canada."

"Strong group tournament package sales in Edmonton, Ottawa, and Victoria have been complimented by brisk online sales through www.FIFA.com for Toronto, Burnaby and Montreal."

The FIFA World Youth Championship held in the Netherlands in 2005 achieved an impressive attendance of 503,000 spectators.

Six European Teams Qualify

Six European sides have now qualified for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007 this past week following the conclusion of the final group stage of the UEFA Under-19 Championship in Poland. Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Portugal, Scotland and Spain all placed in the top three positions of their respective groups, guaranteeing them a berth in the FIFA U-20 World Cup. The European champion will be decided at the final on July 29.

FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007 -
It’s gonna be huge.

In 2007, the world’s biggest game is coming to Canada. Canada will host the World’s finest Under-20 players in six cities across the country - Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Edmonton, Burnaby, and Victoria - with the dates for the tournament set for June 30-July 22, 2007.

The FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007 is expected to be the largest single-sport sporting event ever held in Canada with an anticipated viewership of approximately 750 million worldwide and over 520,000 fans expected to attend the 52-game, 24-team competition.

The biennial event is second only to the FIFA World Cup(tm) in size and scope and will showcase the most talented under-20 soccer players in the world. The tournament has been the coming-out party for some of the game’s top players - Maradona, Saviola, Raúl, Marco Van Basten, Luis Figo, Ruiz Costa, Thierry Henry, Adriano, Roberto Carlos, Bebeto and Dunga as well as Canada’s Craig Forrest and many members of the current Men’s World Cup Team including Julian de Guzman, Paul Stalteri, Atiba Hutchinson and Iain Hume.

Last held in CONCACAF in 1983 in Mexico, Canada’s most recent participation in this event occurred last June in the Netherlands from June 10 - July 2, 2005.

Canada enjoyed it’s its best ever finish in a World Championship in December 2003, losing to eventual silver medalist Spain on a golden goal in the quarter finals in the United Arab Emirates.

The Canadian Soccer Association *
l’Association canadienne de soccer