Samoa will host the 24th edition of the OFC U-19 Men’s Championship, which qualifies teams for the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
The defending champions, New Zealand, have had minimal preparation time, with only a month together before the tournament.
Meanwhile, Fiji, having dedicated over a month to preparation, is under immense pressure to deliver a strong performance, especially after their previous U-19 team’s success in reaching the World Cup.
Fiji’s first match is against Tahiti, who have managed to assemble a strong team despite their preparation challenges. The Solomon Islands will face Vanuatu in another opening-day fixture.
New Zealand, with no warm-up matches and minimal preparation, is in Group B and will face New Caledonia, which has been disrupted by civil unrest, and the host nation Samoa.
New Zealand’s coach is confident in the team’s readiness for the tough matches ahead. He also believes that Samoa, as the host nation, has assembled the strongest team at the U-19 level.
In Group B, the hosts will face defending champions New Zealand, New Caledonia, and Papua New Guinea, who reached the quarter-finals in 2022. Samoa’s captain is excited about playing in front of the home crowd and facing quality teams on their home turf.
