2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup

The 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup will be the 17th edition of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth football championship contested by the U17 national teams of the member associations of FIFA. The tournament will be hosted by India between 6 and 28 October 2017. This will be the first FIFA tournament hosted by the country. The final will be held the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on 28 October 2017.

Should the competition be considered a success, the All India Football Federation has hinted at a FIFA U-20 World Cup & FIFA Club World Cup bid.

Nigeria, the 2015 champions, will not be able to defend their title as they failed to reach the final round of the CAF qualifying tournament. In doing so, they became the first incumbent title holder since Switzerland in 2009 to fail to qualify for the subsequent tournament.

Host selection
Bids had to be submitted by 15 November 2013. The following four countries had submitted bids to host the tournament:



FIFA revealed on 5 December 2013 (as part of their Executive Committee meeting in Salvador, Brazil) that India would be the host.

Qualified teams
A total of 24 teams qualify for the final tournament. In addition to India who qualified automatically as hosts, the other 23 teams qualify from six separate continental competitions. Starting from 2017, the Oceania Football Confederation will receive an additional slot (in total two), while UEFA will have five instead of six slots.


 * 1.Teams that will make their debut.

Venues
The initial short-list of 10 venues in the host cities of New Delhi, Chennai, Pune, Mumbai, Margao, Bangalore, Kolkata, Kochi, Guwahati, and Navi Mumbai was announced in December 2013. Following the reception of FIFA's technical report, Kochi, Delhi, Navi Mumbai, Guwahati, Margao and Kolkata were provisionally selected as venues for the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup in May 2015. The Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi was the first venue to be provisionally selected.Navi Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium was the second stadium to be selected on 20th October 2016. The FIFA delegation visited India between 19–25 October 2016 to evaluate the progress made towards the preparation in each of the six stadiums. After a thorough inspection, the 13-member FIFA team, along with 10 members of the Local Organising committee, ratified Kochi, Goa, Navi Mumbai, New Delhi, Guwahati, and Kolkata as venues for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, 20

Organisation
The following were key milestones in the organisation of the tournament:
 * The official emblem was launched on 27 September 2016.
 * On 19 December 2016, the Bank of Baroda became the first Indian company to sign up as a national supporter for the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017. Hero MotoCorp also signed up on 16 March 2017.
 * The mascot, a clouded leopard named Kheleo, was unveiled on 10 February 2017.
 * The volunteer programme was launched on 6 March 2017.
 * The match schedule and official slogan ("Football Takes Over") were unveiled on 27 March 2017.

Emblem
Launched during the AFC U-16 Championship, which also serves as the first set of qualifiers for next year’s tournament, the emblem of the first-ever FIFA tournament in India was designed as a celebration of the country’s richness and diversity of cultures, with the main elements of the Indian Ocean, the banyan tree, the kite and the starburst – an integral part of the national identity.

Each of these elements has been selected for its deep significance in the culture of the country. The Indian Ocean that serves as the base of the emblem is an integral part of the subcontinent. The banyan tree is the national tree of India, deeply rooted in the culture and ethos of the country and under which rural communities traditionally gather to take all major decisions in its shade.

The kite is the symbol of freedom and fun. Popular across the country, it represents the soaring aspirations of India’s young and vibrant democracy. Finally, the starburst that sits on the top of the emblem evokes festivity and celebration, representing all the festivals that grace this multicultural country and making a statement that the FIFA U-17 World Cup will be a new festival for all calendars.

Shaped like the FIFA U-17 World Cup trophy, the emblem combines the global look of the beautiful game with a quintessentially Indian feel. It represents what the tournament stands for.

Present at the event were FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Praful Patel, Chairman of the LOC and of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), AFC President Shaikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa and Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Vijay Goel.

Draw
The draw will be held on 7 July 2017 in Mumbai.

Group stage
The top two teams of each group and the four best third-placed teams advance to the round of 16.

All times are local, IST (UTC+5:30).

Ranking of third-placed teams
The four best teams among those ranked third are determined as follows (regulations Article 17.7):


 * 1) points obtained in all group matches;
 * 2) goal difference in all group matches;
 * 3) number of goals scored in all group matches;
 * 4) fair play points;
 * 5) drawing of lots by the FIFA Organising Committee.

Sponsors
FIFA partners
 * Adidas
 * Coca-Cola
 * Gazprom
 * Hyundai
 * Qatar Airways
 * Visa
 * WANDA

National Supporters
 * Bank of Baroda
 * Hero MotoCorp