TECHNICAL REPORT AND STATISTICS

4 ForewordHany Abo RidaChairman of the Organising Committeefor the FIFA U-20 World CupDear friends of football,Welcome to the Technical Report for the FIFA U-20World Cup New Zealand 2015. Produced by a panelof experts from the FIFA Technical Study Group (TSG),this report represents a key insight into the maintactical and technical trends that emerged during thetournament. It is also a fundamental educational toolfor all of our 209 member associations.The 20 th edition of FIFA’s biggest youth tournamentwas a resounding success, with 22 days of thrillingand high-quality football attended by more than400,000 fans despite the winter conditions. Some154 goals were scored during New Zealand 2015’s52 games – the fourth-highest total in FIFA U-20World Cup history.teams blessed with technical and tactical skills playingfast and attacking football. The infrastructure met allour requirements and ensured a smooth running of thecompetition.This extraordinary tournament is FIFA’s second biggestin the men’s game, and it continues to grow inpopularity while also adding value to the developmentof our game by giving a global platform to the stars ofthe future.For the Game. For the World.Serbia sparkled as they clinched their first global titleas an independent nation, securing a 2-1 final victoryover Brazil thanks to Nemanja Maksimović’s winnerdeep into extra time. Five-time champions Brazil hadto settle for silver, while Mali took home bronze afterclaiming victory in an all-African, third-place play-offagainst Senegal.June was the ideal month for this tournament as allplayers were released by their clubs, and as always,we saw a host of emerging talents and we canlook forward to watching their progress from here.These will no doubt include Mali’s Adama Traoré,winner of the adidas Golden Ball, and Danilo andSergej Milinković, worthy winners of the Silver andBronze Ball respectively. Other young stars on showincluded Serbia’s Predrag Rajković, winner of theadidas Golden Glove, and Ukraine’s Viktor Kovalenko,winner of the Golden Boot.New Zealand proved to be an excellent host for thecompetition, with fans enjoying performances byHany Abo RidaChairman of theOrganising CommitteeJérôme ValckeFIFA Secretary General