The TSG’s overview of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup 2024

In this article, they explore how goals were scored, the timings of substitutions and the impacts of possession dominance and compare this information with what was observed and recorded during the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Costa Rica 2022™.

During the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup 2024, there were an average of 3.6 goals scored per game, an increase from 2.7 in Costa Rica 2022, with the average winning margin also increasing from 2.1 goals to 2.7. As a result of the increased number of participants in this tournament, it would be expected that the actual numbers of goals and attempts at goal would increase (which is the case with 152 goals scored from inside the penalty area compared to 71 in 2022 and 27 goals scored from outside the penalty area compared to 13). Nevertheless, it is notable that the percentage of goals scored from both inside (84.9% v. 84.5%) and outside (15.1% v. 15.5%) the penalty area in 2024 compared to 2022, respectively, remains stable.

However, when analysing the percentage of attempts at goal, our Football Performance Insights Team noted that attempts from inside the penalty area increased from 52.1% in 2022 to 56.5% in 2024 and attempts at goal from outside the penalty area decreased from 47.9% in Costa Rica 2022 to 43.5% in Colombia 2024.

According to TSG member Heather O’Reilly, “Teams seemed to be more focused on creating higher quality chances and therefore appeared to be more inclined to retain possession and try to get the ball into the penalty area rather than making low-rate attempts at goal from outside it. Players are proving to be more game intelligent in the final third because they clearly evaluated their options and were making better decisions about when to strike at goal and how to get the ball closer to goal.”

Goals from crosses

There was a significant increase in goals created from open play crosses, with 22.6% of all goals scored in Colombia coming from these crosses compared to 13.0% in Costa Rica two years ago. Factoring in the context of the increased number of teams and games (compared to 2022), the total number of goals scored from crosses (including set plays) in 2024 was 56 in comparison to 17 in 2022, with a notable increase in goals from outswing deliveries (+19), including 16 more from open play outswing deliveries.

Interestingly, three goals were scored in 2024 directly from cut-back crosses compared to zero in 2022, while goals scored from push crosses increased (+6). The tournament winners, Korea DPR, scored the most goals (8) from open play crosses and made the most attempts at goal from open play crosses (19), demonstrating an impressive conversion rate of 42.1%.

Receiving actions prior to an attempt at goal

In addition to higher levels of game intelligence prior to making an attempt at goal, our Technical Study Group noted some interesting preferences regarding the ways players who scored goals received the ball prior to making their attempt. The percentage of goals created from loose balls decreased from 17.4% in 2022 to 14.0% in 2024, while goals created from passes increased from 30.4% to 35.5%. Interestingly, the percentage of goals that came directly from set plays decreased from 27.2% in Costa Rica 2022 to just 9.7% in Colombia 2024, while goals from penalties also dropped from 26.1% to 8.6%. However, goals from corners increased from 2.2% to 5.9%.

Body parts used in an attempt at goal

More players made attempts at goal from open play crosses with their feet (97), resulting in 23 goals scored, compared to making headed attempts (72) with 17 goals.

In the clips below, we see examples of goals from open play crosses with finishes by players using their feet and heads.

Goal timings

A higher proportion of goals were scored in the first half of games during this tournament, (51.7%) compared to 2022 (41.5%), with big increases recorded in three of the four first-half time brackets. There was a 6.3% increase in goals scored in the 0–15-minute bracket; a 6.7% jump in the 30–45-minute bracket, while 4.6% of goals came in additional time at the end of the first half (compared to 0.0% in 2022).

All time blocks in the second half recorded decreases in the percentage of goals scored, except additional time at the end of the second half, when it increased from 4.9% to 8.6%.

A slight increase occurred in first-half substitutions during the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup 2024 with 4.1% in 2024 compared to 2.9% in 2022.

According to Anna Signeul, there was an interesting factor at play here. “Most of the time, first-half changes are made due to injuries. However, we noticed that tournament winners, Korea DPR, frequently made early personnel changes that appeared to be tactical or performance related. It was also interesting to see how many head coaches made tactical changes at half-time and early in the second half, with more than a quarter (26.8%) of all substitutions coming in this time period. With five subs available, coaches are more inclined to make changes earlier in games, but we also saw a slight increase (+3.4%) in the percentage of subs made in additional time at the end of the game, as coaches tried to kill time,” she revealed.

Only four teams had an average of more than 50% in-possession time in their games, and all four reached the quarter-final stage at least.  Spain had the most with 60.5%, while tournament winners Korea DPR were second with 53.1%. Quarter-finalists Germany had 53.0%, while tournament runners-up Japan had 51.2%.

Semi-finalists, the USA, had 47.6% and the Netherlands had 47.2%. In fact, seven of the quarter-finalists were ranked in the top nine teams for percentage of time in possession, all registering 47.2% or more. Only Colombia registered less with 41.4%. Tournament debutants Austria (34.5%), Morocco (33.0%) and Fiji (22.8%) were among the lowest-ranked teams for time spent in possession, while Cameroon were just outside the top ten with 43.7%. 

According to Signeul, “Teams playing in the tournament for the first time often try to make sure they are hard to beat, first and foremost, and focus on their out-of-possession organisation as they are coming up against teams that are more experienced, so this is not unusual to see. It’s also quite usual for the strongest teams with the ball to progress to the latter stages of the tournament, but these numbers are a good reflection of the playing styles adapted by the teams.”

It is also interesting to note that the ball was in play for longer (53.2% of the time) in 2024 compared to 2022 (49.9%), with games in the knockout stages showing the highest percentage of ball-in-play time at 55.8%. As noted by Signeul, this is a reflection of higher quality, technical players at this age level.

“Players are better on the ball and teams have improved at retaining possession, even when under pressure. We could see that teams could keep the ball for longer and were more patient in their build-up, opting to retain the ball and keep it moving until the right gaps opened to play forward, rather than playing higher risk forward passes. The game intelligence and technical ability of players is constantly improving, and they are making better decisions when on the ball.”

Teams and head coaches at U-20 level are becoming more strategic about how to implement game plans and how/when to change them. Players are assessing situations and are more patient about creating the right scenarios before making attempts at goal or playing forward passes, while coaches are recognising and implementing opportunities to adapt their approaches earlier.