Canada Soccer names roster for CONCACAF Women’s U-20 Championship in Costa Rica

By Canadian Press on May 15, 2025.

Midfielder Jeneva Hernandez Gray and high-scoring forward Anabelle Chukwu lead Canada’s 21-player squad for the 2025 CONCACAF Women’s U-20 Championship, which kicks off later this month in Costa Rica.

The eight-team CONCACAF tournament, which runs May 29 to June 8 at Alejandro Morera Soto Stadium in Alajuela, will send four CONCACAF sides to the 24-team FIFA U-20 World Cup, scheduled to run Sept. 5 to 27, 2026, in Poland.

Canada has taken part in nine of the previous 11 editions of the FIFA U-20 tournament, missing out in 2010 and 2018. The Canadians lost 2-1 to Spain in the round of 16 at last year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup in Colombia.

Hernandez Gray, who plays in Portugal for Sporting CP, has one senior cap for Canada. Chukwu, who plays collegiate soccer at Notre Dame, has been called into camp by the Canadian senior side but has yet to win a cap.

Canada booked its ticket to the main CONCACAF tournament by winning its qualifying group with ease in February. The Canadians outscored their qualifying opposition 43-0, dispatching Dominica 22-0, Bermuda 9-0 and host Trinidad and Tobago 12-0.

The Dominica win was the second-largest in CONCACAF Women’s Under-20 Qualifiers history, behind the Dominican Republic’s 25-0 romp over the British Virgin Islands in September 2005.

Coach Cindy Tye has retained 18 players from that qualifying squad with defender Victoria Rocci, midfielder Olivia Chisholm and forward Adriana Bianchin added to the roster. Midfielder Liana Tarasco, an alternate on the qualifying squad, also makes the roster.

Midfielders Ava Greco and Ella Kettles and forwards Natelle El Mokbel and Keira Martin, all members of the qualifying roster, miss out.

“We’re excited to reunite this group and build on the foundation we laid during the pre-qualifies,” Tye said in a statement.

“With the emergence of the NSL (Northern Super League), we’re now seeing more athletes in this age group competing regularly at a high level, which is invaluable to our preparation,” she added. “This is a talented group, and we’re looking forward to starting our journey toward qualifying for Poland 2026.”

The Canadians, will gather in Montreal on May 22 for a pre-tournament camp, open Group B play May 29 against Panama before facing Nicaragua on May 31 and Mexico on June 2.

The United States and Mexico, as the top-ranked countries in the confederation, skipped the qualifying round. Canada and 23 other teams had to win their way there, with Costa Rica, Guyana, Nicaragua, Panama and Puerto Rico also topping their groups.

Kaylee Hunter and Kierra Blundell each had seven goals in qualifying with Chukwu adding six and Lea Larouche four. In all, 13 different players scored for Canada.

Chukwu added to her Canadian youth international goal-scoring record (previously held by Christine Sinclair). She now has 34 goals in 37 games from the under-15 to under-20 level.

CANADA

Goalkeepers: Olivia Busby, NDC Ontario; Sofia Cortes-Browne, Arizona State; Noelle Henning, NDC Ontario.

Defenders: April Lantaigne, AFC Toronto (NSL); Inès Nourani, Montreal; Iba Oching, University of Iowa; Janet Okeke, North Carolina State University; Victoria Rocci, NDC-CDN Ontario; Stephanie Schoeley, Providence College.

Midfielders: Olivia Chisholm, NDC-CDN Ontario; Sienna Gibson, UBC; Jeneva Hernandez Gray, Sporting CP (Portugal); Teegan Melenhorst, NDC Ontario; Juliette Perreault, CF Montreal; Liana Tarasco, CF Montreal.

Forwards: Adriana Bianchin, NDC-CDN Ontario; Kierra Blundell, Arizona State University; Annabelle Chukwu, University of Notre Dame; Jadea Collin, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Kaylee Hunter, AFC Toronto; Lea Larouche, Butler University.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 15, 2025.

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press