The best young players from across the globe will come together for the tournament and many of them are sure to go on to become household names in future years.
oceaniafootball.com takes a look at some of the stars to have graced previous tournaments:
Roberto CARLOS: The former Real Madrid star lined up for Brazil at the 1989 tournament in Saudi Arabia and helped his side to a third-place finish. He graduated to the senior national team in 1992 and took part in three world cups, playing a key role as Brazil reached the final in 1998 and took the trophy four years later. He spent 11 years in Madrid, winning four league titles, three UEFA Champions League trophies and two Intercontinental Cups, and is one of only eight players to have played over 100 matches in the Champions League. Now 37, he is seeing out his playing days at Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala.
Petr CECH: The Chelsea custodian is regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the world but it was at the youth tournament in Argentina ten years ago that he first started to make a name for himself. Cech starred between the sticks for the Czech Republic as they reached the quarter-final stage, where they were knocked out 1-0 by Paraguay, and has since gone on to win 79 caps for his country at senior level. He signed for Chelsea from French club Rennes in 2004 and has achieved great success in London, picking up three Premier League titles and five cup-winners medals – three in the FA Cup and two in the League Cup. He won the Golden Gloves award for best Premier League goalkeeper in 2005 and 2010 and holds the league record for fewest appearances required to reach 100 clean sheets, having done so in 180 matches.
Andres INIESTA: The Barcelona midfielder first came to global attention during Spain’s march to the 2003 final in the United Arab Emirates. They lost 1-0 to Brazil but Iniesta had already done enough to be named in the tournament’s all-star team. He had been with Barcelona since an early age but began playing regularly for the first team in 2004 and has been a vital member of the squad ever since. He was a key part of the sextuple-winning side of 2009, the only time that a club has earned six titles in a year. He has also played an important role for his country, scoring the winning goal and being named man of the match as Spain won the 2010 FIFA World Cup final over the Netherlands.
KAKA: Former FIFA World Player of the Year Kaka helped Brazil to the quarter-finals of the 2001 tournament but could not prevent them being ousted at that stage after a shock 2-1 defeat to Ghana. That setback appeared to have little effect on his progress though and he has gone on to become one of the best players of his generation. The 28-year-old made a name for himself at Italian giants AC Milan, scoring 70 goals in just under 200 games, before signing for Real Madrid in 2009 for a fee of £56 million, a world record at the time. He won the Ballon d’Or and World Player of the Year titles in 2007 and the devout Christian is also known for his humanitarian work away from the pitch.
Diego MARADONA: The legendary name of Diego Maradona is one familiar to all football fans but, when he took the field for his native Argentina in Japan in 1979, a career that would become one of the most talked about in history was only just beginning. If those who follow the game closely hadn’t heard of him before the tournament, they most certainly had by the time it was finished. The midfielder, blessed with sublime skills and a sharp turn of pace, light up the tournament with his immense talent as Argentina helped themselves to the trophy. He repeated the trick seven years later at senior level, captaining Argentina to the 1986 World Cup title. He played in three other world cups – 1982, 1990 and 1994 – and starred for Barcelona and Napoli before finishing his career at Boca Juniors in 1997. He was in charge of his country’s destiny at a world cup again in 2010, this time as coach, but could not repeat his playing heroics as Argentina went out to Germany in the quarter-finals.
Lionel MESSI: The reigning Ballon d’Or holder used the 2005 tournament in the Netherlands to announce himself on the international stage as a major talent. Messi – hailed by many, including the man himself, as Maradona’s successor – won the Golden Boot with six goals and was named player of the tournament as Argentina won their fifth title at this level. Soon after, he earned a place in the senior national side and, in 2006, became the youngest Argentine to play in the world cup. He won a runners-up medal at the Copa América tournament the following year and picked up his first international honour, an Olympic gold medal, at the Beijing Games in 2008. He has scored a remarkable 115 goals in just 167 appearances for Barcelona and, among several other honours, has won four La Liga titles, two UEFA Champions Leagues and one FIFA Club World Cup with the Catalan giants.
RAUL: The UEFA Champions League’s all-time leading goalscorer was beaten to the Golden Boot at the 1995 youth tournament in Qatar by Spain team mate Joseba Etxeberria. But his performances were enough to kick start a career that saw Raul become one of the finest strikers in the world and pocket a raft of individual and team honours. He currently plays for Schalke 04 in the German Bundesliga but spent most of his career with Real Madrid and is the club’s highest ever goalscorer. He is a three-time winner of the Champions League and also has six La Liga titles to his name. He left Madrid last year having scored 323 goals in 741 appearances.
RONALDINHO: By their high standards, Brazil had a disappointing tournament in 1999 in Nigeria, losing in the quarter-finals to fellow South Americans Uruguay, but the campaign was notable for the emergence of a very special talent. Ronaldinho scored three goals during the event and his trademark smile would soon become a familiar sight in goal celebration mode. He counts Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan amongst his former clubs but his best years were spent with Barcelona, where he developed into one of the best players in the world and was awarded the Ballon d’Or in 2005. He won the UEFA Champions League and two La Liga titles during his time in Spain and has been capped by his country 88 times, scoring 32 goals. He returned to Brazil to play for Flamengo earlier this year.
Luis SURAEZ: The fleet-footed striker is quickly becoming a fans’ favourite at new club Liverpool but it was at the U-20 world cup in Canada in 2007 that he first caught the eye, scoring twice before Uruguay went out to the United States in the round of 16. He got over that disappointment quickly to have a major impact at Dutch giants Ajax, notching 81 goals in only 110 appearances during a remarkable four years with the club. He was named Dutch Footballer of the Year in 2010, having ended the season as the Eredivisie’s top scorer with 35 goals in 33 matches. That form earned him a £23 million move to Anfield and he was briefly the club’s most expensive signing. He formed a formidable partnership with Diego Forlan at the 2010 FIFA World Cup as Uruguay unexpectedly made it to the semi-finals.
Rafeal VAN DER VAART: The Dutch maestro may now be one of the world’s best goal-scoring midfielders but it took him until the quarter-final stage to find the net at the 2001 tournament in Argentina and that goal wasn’t enough to prevent a 2-1 defeat to Egypt. He is yet to pick up as many top honours as most of the players on this list but his quality is not in doubt and, at 28, he still has his best years ahead of him. The attacking midfielder came through the famed Ajax youth academy and scored 52 goals in 117 appearances for the first team before signing for German club Hamburg, finishing as the side’s top-scorer in his first season and becoming captain the next. The club was always going to struggle to hang onto such a prize asset though and it was no surprise when he moved to Real Madrid in 2008. It was more of an eyebrow-raiser when he jo
ined Tottenham Hotspur in a last-gasp transfer deadline deal last year and he has not disappointed the Spurs fans, scoring ten goals already. He has played 88 times for the Netherlands, scoring 16 goals, and helped them to the 2010 FIFA World Cup final.