England wins U-17 World Cup for the first time in dramatic comeback

This was a spectacular victory for the young English players when they were 0-2 down to Spain after just 31 minutes (Gomez scored in the 10th and 31st minutes).

But then, England U-17 made an extremely impressive comeback with 5 goals scored by Brewster (minute 44), Gibbs-White (minute 58), Forden (minute 69 and 88) and Guehi (minute 84).

England's first ever U-17 World Cup win. Photo: FIFA

This was an impressive championship for coach Steve Cooper and his team, as they went completely unbeaten throughout the 7 matches in the tournament. Winning all 10 matches in a group containing Chile and Mexico, England continued to overcome Japan (winning on penalties after a 0-0 draw) then the US (winning 4-1), Brazil (winning 3-1) in the following knockout rounds, before crushing Spain in the final.

England U-17 also won two individual awards, the Golden Ball (Phil Foden) and the Golden Boot (Brewster, 8 goals), while Brazilian goalkeeper Brazao received the Golden Glove. In the third-place match, Brazil defeated Mali 2-0.

Foden (right) and Brewster receive individual awards. Photo: AFO

Up to now, the U-17 World Cup has been considered an arena reserved for African and American football, with Nigeria being the team with the most championships (5 times), followed by Brazil (3 times), Ghana (2 times), Mexico (2 times)...

Before England, only two European teams had won this tournament: France (2001) and Switzerland (2009). This championship continues to show the rise of English youth football, as just last year, they also won the U-20 World Cup for the first time.

According to TTO