U.S. withdraws from FIFA U17 World Cup in Qatar over safety concerns

U.S. The tournament was scheduled to run from November 19 to December 13, with the U.S. team set to open Group J play against Montenegro on November 21 at the Aspire Zone Sports Complex in Al Rayyan/Doha, followed by matches against Chile on November 24 and Algeria on November 27. All group matches were to be broadcast on FS2.

The decision comes just days after head coach Alex Aldaz named a 21-player roster on November 11 for the competition. The squad included goalkeepers James Donaldson (Atlanta United FC), Philipp Eckle (FC Augsburg), and Tobias Szewczyk (Red Bull New York); defenders Miles Aalbersberg (Ajax), Eddie Chadwick (Queens Park Rangers), Gianmarco Di Noto (Columbus Crew), Prince Forfor (Columbus Crew), Astin Mbaye (AC Milan), and Joshua Wilbrenninck-van Cuilenborg (Feyenoord); midfielders Deven Cadigan (Red Bull New York), Vinny Garcia (LA Galaxy), Peter Molinari (New York City FC), Judah Siqueira (New England Revolution), Kaedren Spivey (San Jose Earthquakes), and Ignacio Suarez-Couri (Atlanta United FC); and forwards Kashan Hines (Sporting Kansas City), Malik Jakupovic (Philadelphia Union), Will Ostrander (PSV), Robert Turdean (Chicago Fire FC), Makai Wells (New England Revolution), and Edward Wumah (Girona). The roster featured 18 players born in 2009 and three born in 2010, drawn from 17 clubs including 14 from 10 MLS clubs and seven based abroad.

The team was scheduled to begin a pre-camp in Salwa, Qatar on November 9 before transitioning to Doha on November 18. The U.S. qualified for the tournament in February by winning Group E at the 2026 Concacaf U-17 Qualifiers in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, where forward Malik Jakupovic scored eight of the team's 19 goals. The 2026 edition is the second under the new annual 48-team format and the second of five consecutive tournaments hosted by Qatar. The 48 teams are divided into 12 groups of four, with the top two from each group plus the eight best third-place finishers advancing to the Round of 32. The final was set for December 13 at Ahmed Bin Ali Stadium and Khalifa International Stadium.