The Republic of Ireland BU15s will make history this October as they travel to Baku, Azerbaijan, for the first-ever edition of the FIFA Youth Tournament.

The inaugural competition, specifically designed for an 8v8 format, will see over 3,000 players from across the globe descend on the Azerbaijani capital for a week of intensive competition between October 24th and 30th.

Ireland have been drawn into a diverse and challenging Group C, where they will face off against England, Montenegro, Zimbabwe, Nicaragua and Cambodia.

The tournament is designed to provide maximum international exposure for young players. Following a qualification stage, teams will be ranked and placed into new groups (Group A for winners, Group B for runners-up, etc.) for the tournament stage.

The knockout phase features a pathway system. While the matches are knockout format, with no extra time and draws decided by penalties, the structure ensures that every team, regardless of their results, will play exactly ten matches across the week. This guarantees invaluable minutes on the pitch against top-tier global opposition.

Ireland will open their campaign on the morning of October 24th against Montenegro, followed by a double-header on October 25th. The pick of the group stages will undoubtedly be the MD3 clash against England on October 26th.

Republic of Ireland Fixtures (All times Irish)
MD1: Oct 24th | Montenegro v Republic of Ireland | 05:00
MD2: Oct 25th | Republic of Ireland v Zimbabwe | 07:45
MD2: Oct 25th | Nicaragua v Republic of Ireland | 15:45
MD3: Oct 26th | England v Republic of Ireland | 09:30
MD3: Oct 26th | Ireland v Cambodia | 15:45

Following the completion of the Group C fixtures, Ireland’s ranking will determine their placement for the knockout and pathway stages.