OFC U-16/U-17 Championship

OFC U-16/U-17 Championship
Organising bodyOFC
Founded1983
RegionOceania
Number of teams11
Current champions New Zealand
(10th title)
Most successful team(s) Australia
 New Zealand
(10 titles each)
2024 OFC U-16 Championship

The OFC U-16 Championship is a biennial football tournament for players under the age of 16. The tournament decides the only two qualification spots for the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) and its representatives at the FIFA U-17 World Cup, which is held every two years.

Between 1983 and 2017, the tournament was open to teams under-17 years of age and was called the OFC U-17 Championship. Since 2018, the age limit was reduced to under 16 years of age, the tournament is called the OFC U-16 Championship.

Eligible teams

[edit]

All member nations of the Oceania Football Confederation are allowed to enter a team. Teams that have participated in the tournament so far were:

Results

[edit]

The list of winners:[1]

U17 format

Edition Year Host Final Third Place Match
Champion Score Second Place Third Place Score Fourth Place
1 1983
Details
Auckland, New Zealand
Australia
Round robin
New Zealand

Chinese Taipei
Round robin
New Caledonia
2 1986 Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Australia
Round robin
New Zealand

Chinese Taipei
Round robin
Papua New Guinea
3 1989 Australia
Australia
Round robin
New Zealand

Chinese Taipei
Round robin
Fiji
4 1991
Details
Napier, New Zealand
Australia
Round robin
New Zealand

Fiji
Round robin No fourth place[2]
5 1993 New Zealand
Australia
3–0
Solomon Islands

New Zealand
unknown
Fiji
6 1995 Vanuatu
Australia
1–0
New Zealand

Vanuatu
3–0
Solomon Islands
7 1997 New Zealand
New Zealand
1–0
Australia

Solomon Islands
3–0
Fiji
8 1999 Ba & Nadi, Fiji
Australia
5–0
Fiji

Solomon Islands
unknown
New Caledonia
9 2001
Details
Apia, Samoa & Port Vila, Vanuatu
Australia
3–0
6–0
(9–0)
two-legged match

New Zealand
10 2003
Details
Pago Pago, American Samoa, Sunshine Coast, Australia [3] & Nouméa, New Caledonia
Australia
3–1
4–0
(7–1)
two-legged match

New Caledonia
11 2005
Details
New Caledonia
Australia
1–0
Vanuatu

Solomon Islands
3–1
New Caledonia
12 2007
Details
Pirae, Tahiti
New Zealand
Round robin
Tahiti

Fiji
Round robin
New Caledonia
13 2009
Details
Auckland, New Zealand
New Zealand
Round robin
Tahiti

New Caledonia
Round robin
Vanuatu
14 2011
Details
Albany, New Zealand
New Zealand
2–0
Tahiti

Solomon Islands
2–0
Vanuatu
15 2013
Details
Luganville, Vanuatu
New Zealand
Round robin
New Caledonia

Vanuatu
Round robin
Fiji
16 2015
Details
Apia, Samoa & Pago Pago, American Samoa
New Zealand
1–1
(5–4 pen.)

Tahiti

Vanuatu
6–0
New Caledonia
17 2017
Details
Papeete, Tahiti
New Zealand
7–0
New Caledonia
2021
Details
TBC, Fiji Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic[4]
18 2023
Details
Suva & Ba, Fiji
New Zealand
1–0
New Caledonia

Tahiti
3–0
Fiji

U16 format

Edition Year Host Final Third Place Match
Champion Score Second Place Third Place Score Fourth Place
1 2018
Details
Honiara, Solomon Islands[5]
New Zealand
0–0
(5–4 pen.)

Solomon Islands
[note 1]

Tahiti
2–1
Fiji
2 2024
Details
Papeete, Tahiti
New Zealand
3–1
Fiji

New Caledonia
1–1
(5–4 pen.)

Tahiti


Notes
  1. ^ The Solomon Islands, which originally finished second in the 2018 OFC U-16 Championship, were found by the OFC to have deliberately fielded overage player Chris Satu during the tournament. As a result, they had forfeited all results and their place in the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup.[6] The decision was appealed by the Solomon Islands Football Federation, and the OFC Executive Committee decided to uphold the appeal on the grounds that the federation had not knowingly broken the rules as Satu had a government issued passport showing his eligibility.[7]

Performances by country

[edit]
Team Titles Runners-up Third place Fourth place
 New Zealand 10 (1997*, 2007, 2009*, 2011*, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2023, 2024) 6 (1983*, 1986, 1989, 1991*, 1995, 2001) 1 (1993*)
 Australia 10 (1983, 1986, 1989*, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1999, 2001, 2003*, 2005) 1 (1997)
 Tahiti 4 (2007*, 2009, 2011, 2015) 2 (2018, 2023) 1 (2024)
 New Caledonia 4 (2003*, 2013, 2017, 2023) 2 (2009, 2024) 5 (1983, 1999, 2005*, 2007, 2015)
 Solomon Islands 2 (1993, 2018*) 4 (1997, 1999, 2005, 2011) 1 (1995)
 Fiji 2 (1999*, 2024) 2 (1991, 2007) 6 (1989, 1993, 1997, 2013, 2018, 2023)
 Vanuatu 1 (2005) 3 (1995*, 2013*, 2015) 2 (2009, 2011)
 Chinese Taipei 3 (1983, 1986*, 1989)
 Papua New Guinea 1 (1986)
* = As hosts

Note: no third or fourth place finishes in 1991 (no fourth place finish only), 2001, 2003 and 2017.

Participating nations

[edit]
Legend
  • 1st – Champions
  • 2nd – Runners-up
  • 3rd – Third place
  • 4th – Fourth place
  • SF – Semi-finalists
  • GS – Group stage
  • PR – Preliminary Round
  •  ×  – Did not participate
  •  ×  – Withdrew
  •      – Hosts
  •      – Not affiliated to OFC
  • Q – Qualified for upcoming tournament
Team New Zealand
1983
Taiwan
1986
Australia
1989
New Zealand
1991
New Zealand
1993
Vanuatu
1995
New Zealand
1997
Fiji
1999
Samoa
Vanuatu
2001
American Samoa
Australia
New Caledonia
2003
New Caledonia
2005
French Polynesia
2007
New Zealand
2009
New Zealand
2011
Samoa
Vanuatu
2013
American Samoa
Samoa
2015
Samoa
French Polynesia
2017
Tonga
Solomon Islands
2018
Fiji
2023
Total
 American Samoa × × × × × × × GS GS GS × × × GS PR GS PR PR GS 9
 Australia 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 2nd 1st 1st 1st 1st AFC member 11
 Chinese Taipei 3rd 3rd 3rd AFC member 3
 Cook Islands × × × × × × GS GS × GS GS × × GS GS GS PR PR QF 10
 Fiji GS GS 4th 3rd 4th GS 4th 2nd GS GS GS 3rd × GS 4th GS GS 4th 4th 18
 New Caledonia 4th × × × × × × 4th × 2nd 4th 4th 3rd GS 2nd 4th 2nd GS 2nd 12
 New Zealand 2nd 2nd 2nd 2nd 3rd 2nd 1st × 2nd GS × 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st 17
 Papua New Guinea × 4th × × × × × GS GS × GS × × GS GS GS SF GS × 9
 Samoa × × × × × × GS GS GS GS × × × × PR GS GS GS QF 9
 Solomon Islands × × × × 2nd 4th 3rd 3rd GS GS 3rd × × 3rd × GS SF 2nd × 11
 Tahiti GS × × × GS × GS GS GS GS GS 2nd 2nd 2nd × 2nd GS 3rd 3rd 14
 Tonga × × × × × × × GS GS GS GS × × GS PR GS PR PR QF 10
 Vanuatu × × GS × GS 3rd GS GS GS GS 2nd × 4th 4th 3rd 3rd GS GS QF 15

Men's U-17 World Cup Qualifiers

[edit]
Legend
  • 1st – Champions
  • 2nd – Runners-up
  • 3rd – Third place
  • 4th – Fourth place
  • QF – Quarterfinals
  • R2 – Round 2
  • R1 – Round 1
  •      – Hosts
  •      – Not affiliated to OFC
  • Q – Qualified for upcoming tournament
Team China
1985
Canada
1987
Scotland
1989
Italy
1991
Japan
1993
Ecuador
1995
Egypt
1997
New Zealand
1999
Trinidad and Tobago
2001
Finland
2003
Peru
2005
South Korea
2007
Nigeria
2009
Mexico
2011
United Arab Emirates
2013
Chile
2015
India
2017
Brazil
2019
Indonesia
2023
Qatar
2025
Total
 Australia QF QF R1 QF QF QF 2nd QF R1 R1 AFC member 10
 Fiji Q 1
 New Caledonia R1 R1 Q 3
 New Zealand R1 R1 R1 R2 R2 R1 R2 R1 R1 R1 Q 11
 Solomon Islands R1 1

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Oceania U-17 World Cup Qualifiers". RSSSF. Retrieved 25 January 2013.
  2. ^ Only three teams took part in the competition that year (Oceania Preliminary Competition for the U-17 World Cup 1991)
  3. ^ Solomon Islands were originally selected as the host nation for Group B of the tournament, but agreed to move the Group to Australia due to safety concerns. (Oceania Preliminary Competition for the U-17 World Cup 2003)
  4. ^ "OFC confirms schedule changes". Oceania Football Confederation. 4 March 2021.
  5. ^ "OFC Competition calendar set for 2018". Oceania Football Confederation. 31 October 2017.
  6. ^ "OFC Disciplinary Committee releases decision on eligibility". Oceania Football Confederation. 16 February 2019.
  7. ^ "Solomon Islands player eligibility appeal upheld". Oceania Football Confederation. 4 May 2019.
[edit]