WHO’S ON THE PLANE? Young Lionesses vying for U20 World Cup squad

Who could make England’s Under-20 final squad for the World Cup in Poland? There’s fierce competition…

Sylvain Jamet looks closely at the six preparation games played under Lydia Bedford in 2026, and sees some clear trends arising.

Before we get into this, it’s important to note that England’s participation in the 2026 Under 20 World Cup in Poland is not confirmed yet, as the UEFA boycott of all FIFA competition still hangs over its member countries. Poland, the hosts, and France have already named their squads, so they are likely to compete. The FFF has even confirmed to the BBC that they will travel to Poland.   

Another key point is that the tournament is not in the FIFA international calendar, which means there is no compulsory release for the players. Clubs could be reluctant to let their players go right at the end of pre-season and that would also mean missing a minimum of two – and up to five – club games.

When you build a squad for a football tournament, you do not take the 21 best players available. You select the players who can work and live together for a full month. It does impact decisions when you have to choose between two players who have the same performance level.

So what does the data from the minutes played in 2026 tell us?

First the goalkeeper situation as this is a special position. Katie Cox is clearly going to be the starting goalkeeper. Kaiya Jota will be the number two and Eve Annets has played 15 minutes, while Sophia Poor has played none while being on the bench four times.

The third goalkeeper has a different job as she is unlikely to play a game and therefore requires a mindset that is focused on helping the preparation of the number one goalie. So we can only guess Cox and Jota are definitely in .

Then we have the main outfield players who will be starters or first in the rotation. I believe there are some 14 players competing to be starters in the ten outfield places.

Chloe Sarwie and Rachel Maltby at left-back. Ria Bose and Chloe Hylton at right-back. 

Laila Harbert, Alexia Potter, Erica Meg Parkisnon and May Cruft in midfield. Lucy Newell and Cecily Wellesley-Smith alongside Zara Shaw who can also cover at defensive midfield at centre-back.

Likely Parkinson, Vera Jones and Lola Brown as wingers. With Princess Ademiluyi as a striker

So this leaves four spots available. I think the following players will be used mainly as substitutes during the tournament: Vivienne Lia on the wing, who can also play at full-back on both side of the pitch, and Jessie Gale as a striker.

For the final two spots I think Layla Drury, Ava Baker or Eva Hendle will get the final attacking spot. For the final defensive spot Lily Dent, Chloe Paxton or Grace McEwen.

Among the eligible players born in 2006, there are two players who would have been definitely on the plane to Poland if fit, but are sadly still recovering from their ACL injuries: Katie Reid and Michelle Agyemang. Having said that, of course we do not know if Arsenal would have allowed them to participate in the tournament or kept them to play in the WSL and UWCL.

Overall England should have a very strong squad that can definitely get out of the Group stage and aim to reach at least the tournament’s semi-finals.

U20 WWC Tournament dates: 5–27 September (with England currently scheduled to play Canada on the first day)