The Canada National Football Junior Team a.k.a. the Football Canada World Junior Team represent Canada in international gridiron football competitions. The football program is part of the football development program and is controlled by Football Canada and is recognized by the International Federation of American Football (IFAF). It is the premiere team in male development for the organization. While Football Canada is the governing body for amateur Canadian football, IFAF-sponsored games are played using American football rules. Team Canada first competed on the world stage in the NFL Global Junior Championship in 2000 with a championship victory over Team Europe. They competed for their first IFAF Junior World Cup in 2009.[1]
| Full name | Football Canada World Junior Team |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | True North |
| Short name | Team Canada/Equipe Canada |
| Sport | American Football/Canadian Football |
| Founded | Organization 1882, U20 Team 2000 |
| League | IFAF |
| Division | IFAF Americas |
| Location | Headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario |
| Colours | |
| Anthem | O Canada, Fight song: The Maple Leaf Forever |
| Owner | Non-profit |
| President |  Jim Mullin |
| Managing director | Kevin McDonald |
| Head coach | Warren Craney |
| Manager | Jamie Geisler |
| Divisions | IFAF Americas |
| Affiliation(s) | IFAF |
| Overall record | NFL Global Junior Championship: 22-4, IFAF: 17-3, Overall: 39-7 |
| Championships | NFL Global Junior Championship: 2000, 2005, 2006, 2007, IFAF: 2012, 2016, 2018, 2024. |
| Broadcasters | IFAF.tv, TSN |
| Website | footballcanada.com |
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's American football | ||
| Representing Canada
| ||
| NFL Global Junior Championship | ||
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2000 United States | Team Competition |
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2001 United States | Team Competition |
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2002 United States | Team Competition |
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2003 United States | Team Competition |
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2004 United States | Team Competition |
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2005 United States | Team Competition |
|
2006 United States | Team Competition |
|
2007 United States | Team Competition |
| World Championship | ||
|
2009 United States | Team Competition |
|
2012 United States | Team Competition |
|
2014 Kuwait | Team Competition |
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2016 China | Team Competition |
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2018 Mexico | Team Competition |
|
2024 Canada | Team Competition |
Canada developed the Football Canada World Junior Team as an elite program which participated in the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) Under-19 World Championship which was scheduled held every two years from 2012 until 2020. This tournament was previously known as the IFAF Junior World Cup.
The IFAF U20 World Junior Championship replaced the U19 format and was staged in June 2024 in Edmonton, Canada.[2] With the 2020 championship cancelled due to COVID-19, there were efforts to restage that event in 2021 as a U20 aged event in Vancouver, but was still subject to Pandemic cancellations.[3]
History
editFootball Canada became a full member of the IFAF in 2004.[4] Thereafter Canada competed in international junior, flag, and women's football events.[5]
Team Canada is the most successful team at the IFAF World Junior Championships, with four championships and two silver medals. Canada is the only national team to win three consecutive championships in 2016 in Harbin, China over the United States, followed up with a 2018 win in Mexico, 13–7 over the host Mexicans in front of 30,515 at Mexico 68 Estadio Olympico and a 20-7 win over Japan at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium on 30 June 2024.[6]
The roster of the Canada national football junior team is players aged 20 and under and are typically from U SPORTS, Canadian Junior Football League (CJFL), Quebec-based CEGEP schools, high school or community football programs. The head coach for the program is selected by Football Canada and appointed prior to selecting the remainder of the tournaments coaching staff or players. Warren Craney was appointed head coach of the 2024 team, reprising his role from 2016. Craney is the most decorated coach in IFAF football with two gold medals as a head coach (2016, 2024), one gold as an offensive coordinator in 2012, and two slivers (2009, 2014). In the 2024 World Junior Championship, Canada fieldeda "B" Team named Canada II, coached by former McGill Redbirds Head Coach Ronald Hilaire which finished fifth.
IFAF World Junior Championship Games
edit| WC | winner | loser | game | date and location | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Canada | 55 | New Zealand | 0 | Quarterfinal | June 27, 2009 at Canton, Ohio |
| Canada | 38 | Japan | 35 | Semifinal | July 1, 2009 at Canton, Ohio | |
| United States | 41 | Canada | 3 | Final | July 4, 2009 at Canton, Ohio | |
| 2012 | Canada | 43 | Sweden | 0 | Quarterfinal | June 30, 2012 at Austin, Texas |
| Canada | 33 | Japan | 24 | Semifinal | July 4, 2012 at Austin, Texas | |
| Canada | 23 | USA | 17 | Final | July 7, 2012 at Austin, Texas | |
| 2014 | Canada | 91 | Kuwait | 0 | Pool game | July 7, 2014 at Kuwait City |
| Canada | 56 | France | 0 | Pool game | July 10, 2014 at Kuwait City | |
| Canada | 36 | Austria | 7 | Pool game | July 13, 2014 at Kuwait City | |
| United States | 40 | Canada | 17 | Final | July 16, 2014 at Kuwait City | |
| 2016 | Canada | 30 | Mexico | 16 | Pool game | June 30, 2016 at Harbin, China |
| United States | 32 | Canada | 14 | Pool game | July 3, 2016 at Harbin, China | |
| Canada | 28 | Mexico | 21 | Semifinal | July 7, 2016 at Harbin, China | |
| Canada(2) | 24 | United States | 6 | Final | July 10, 2016 at Harbin, China | |
| 2018 | Canada | 60 | Sweden | 0 | Quarterfinal | July 15, 2018 at Mexico City |
| Canada | 28 | Japan | 22 | Semifinal | July 18, 2018 at Mexico City | |
| Canada(3) | 13 | Mexico | 7 | Final | July 21, 2018 at Mexico City | |
| 2024 | Canada | 110 | Brazil | 0 | Quarterfinal | June 22, 2024 at Edmonton, Alberta |
| Canada | 27 | Austria | 20 | Semifinal | June 26, 2024 at Edmonton, Alberta | |
| Canada(4) | 20 | Japan | 9 | Final | June 30, 2024 at Edmonton, Alberta |
References
edit- ^ "2009 Junior National Team". footballcanada.com. Football Canada. Archived from the original on 2012-03-28. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
- ^ "New-style IFAF World Under-20 Championships heading for Canada in 2024". 28 February 2019. Archived from the original on 2021-05-12. Retrieved 2020-08-06.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2020-12-12. Retrieved 2020-08-06.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "A Brief History of Football Canada". footballcanada.com. Football Canada. 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-09-29. Retrieved February 8, 2011.
- ^ "Canada". ifaf.com. International Federation of American Football. 2011. Archived from the original on July 18, 2011. Retrieved February 8, 2011.
- ^ https://www.americanfootballinternational.com/canada-defeats-team-mexico-wins-gold-medal-at-2018-ifaf-u19-world-championships/#:~:text=U19%20World%20Championships-,Canada%20defeats%20Team%20Mexico%2C%20wins%20gold%20medal,2018%20IFAF%20U19%20World%20Championships&text=Team%20Canada%20defeated%20Mexico%2013,Mexico%20City's%2068%20Olympic%20Stadium Archived 2020-08-08 at the Wayback Machine.