# Portugal national under-20 football team

The Portugal national under-20 football team is the national under-20 football team of Portugal and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal.
The U20 team acts mainly as a feeder team for the under-21s and provides further international development for youth players. The team qualified for its only official match, FIFA U-20 World Cup, depends on U19 results.
The Portuguese team has 12 participations in the FIFA U-20 World Cup and 12 in the Toulon Tournament.

## History
### The Golden Generation (1989–1991)

The Golden Generation was the Generation of the players that won consecutive FIFA Youth Championships in 1989 and 1991.

### The Silver Generation (2011)

The Courage Generation was the Generation of players that was runner up in the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

## Competitive record
### FIFA U-20 World Cup

| Year | Round | GP | W | D | L | GS | GA |
| 1977 | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 1979 | Quarter-finals | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 1981 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1983 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1985 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1987 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1989 | Champions | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 3 |
| 1991 | Champions | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| 1993 | Group stage | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
| 1995 | Third place | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 6 |
| 1997 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1999 | Round of 16 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 |
| 2001 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2003 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2005 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2007 | Round of 16 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 2009 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2011 | Runners-up | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 3 |
| 2013 | Round of 16 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 7 |
| 2015 | Quarter-finals | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 2 |
| 2017 | Quarter-finals | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 7 |
| 2019 | Group stage | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 2023 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2025 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| Total | 12/24 | 57 | 31 | 11 | 15 | 81 | 50 |

## Honours
### Team

* FIFA U-20 World Cup
** Winner (2): 1989, 1991
** Runner-up (1): 2011
** Third place (1): 1995
* Toulon Tournament
** Winner (3): 1992, 2001, 2003
** Runner-up (4): 1994, 1997, 2000, 2005
** Third place (4): 1998, 2006, 2014, 2016
* Torneio Internacional da Madeira
** Winner (7): 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008
** Runner-up (4): 1998, 2001, 2004, 2006
* Torneio Campos Verdes
** Winner (2): 2007, 2008
* Copa El Presidente de La Republica - Ricardo Martinelli
** Third place (1): 2011
* SBS Cup International Youth Soccer
** Runner-up (1): 2012
* Elite League U20
** Runner-up (1): 2018-19

### Individual awards

* FIFA U-20 World Cup
| Year | Golden Ball | Silver Ball | Bronze Ball |
| 1991 | Emílio Peixe | | Paulo Torres |
| 1995 | | Dani | |
| 2011 | | Nélson Oliveira | |
| Year | Golden Shoe | Silver Shoe | Bronze Show |
| 1995 | | Dani | |
| 2013 | | Bruma | |
| Year | Golden glove |
| 2011 | Mika |
* Toulon Tournament
| Year | Top scorer |
| 1996 | Nuno Gomes |
| 1997 | Carlitos |
| 2001 | Lourenço |
| 2003 | Lourenço |
| 2005 | Ricardo Vaz Tê |
| Year | Most Elegant Player |
| 1997 | Edgar Pacheco |
| 2000 | Ednilson |
| 2001 | Ricardo Costa |
| 2004 | Raul Meireles |
| 2005 | Organista |
| 2007 | Bruno Gama |
| Year | Best Goalkeeper |
| 1997 | Nuno Santos |
| 1998 | Nuno Santos |
| 2000 | Sérgio Leite |
| 2003 | Bruno Vale |
| 2016 | Joel Pereira |
| Year | Revelation |
| 2014 | Ricardo Horta |

## Players
### Current squad

* The following players were called up for the 2022–23 Under 20 Elite League matches.
* Match dates: 23 and 28 March 2023
* Opposition: Romania and Czech Republic
* Caps and goals correct as of: 22 November 2022, after the match against Germany
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
| 1GK | João Carvalho | (2004-04-09) 9 April 2004 (age 20) | 2 | 0 | Braga |
| 1GK | Louis Mouquet | (2004-07-21) 21 July 2004 (age 20) | 1 | 0 | Paris Saint-Germain |
| 2DF | Guilherme Montóia | (2003-09-14) 14 September 2003 (age 21) | 4 | 0 | Norwich City |
| 2DF | Nazinho | (2003-07-20) 20 July 2003 (age 21) | 4 | 0 | Sporting CP |
| 2DF | João Tomé | (2003-02-12) 12 February 2003 (age 22) | 4 | 0 | Benfica |
| 2DF | Gilberto Batista | (2003-12-29) 29 December 2003 (age 21) | 2 | 0 | Sporting CP |
| 2DF | José Müller | (2003-02-22) 22 February 2003 (age 21) | 1 | 0 | Benfica |
| 2DF | Ni | (2003-03-01) 1 March 2003 (age 21) | 1 | 0 | Vitória de Guimarães |
| 2DF | Alberto Cotsa | (2003-09-29) 29 September 2003 (age 21) | 0 | 0 | Vitória de Guimarães |
| 3MF | Renato Veiga | (2003-07-29) 29 July 2003 (age 21) | 4 | 1 | Chelsea |
| 3MF | Diogo Abreu | (2003-01-04) 4 January 2003 (age 22) | 3 | 0 | Sporting CP |
| 3MF | Gustavo Mendonça | (2003-03-11) 11 March 2003 (age 21) | 3 | 0 | Canelas 2010 |
| 3MF | Daniel Carvalho | (2003-12-18) 18 December 2003 (age 21) | 2 | 0 | Vitória de Setúbal |
| 3MF | Matchoi Djaló | (2003-04-10) 10 April 2003 (age 21) | 2 | 0 | Paços de Ferreira |
| 3MF | Marco Cruz | (2004-02-23) 23 February 2004 (age 20) | 1 | 0 | Sporting CP |
| 3MF | Gonçalo Nogueira | (2003-12-28) 28 December 2003 (age 21) | 0 | 0 | Vitória de Guimarães |
| 4FW | Diogo Cabral | (2003-06-01) 1 June 2003 (age 21) | 4 | 1 | Sporting CP |
| 4FW | Rodrigo Gomes | (2003-07-07) 7 July 2003 (age 21) | 4 | 1 | Braga |
| 4FW | Pedro Santos | (2003-02-10) 10 February 2003 (age 22) | 4 | 0 | Benfica |
| 4FW | Precatado | (2004-12-06) 6 December 2004 (age 20) | 2 | 0 | Benfica |
| 4FW | Martim Tavares | (2003-11-10) 10 November 2003 (age 21) | 2 | 0 | Boavista |
| 4FW | Rodrigo Pereira | (2003-03-07) 7 March 2003 (age 21) | 0 | 0 | Académico de Viseu |

### Recent call-ups

The following players have previously been called up to the Portugal under-20 squad in the last twelve months and remain eligible for selection.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
| GK | Diogo Pinto | (2004-06-18) 18 June 2004 (age 20) | 0 | 0 | Sporting CP | v. Germany, 22 November 2022 |
| DF | Diogo Travassos | (2004-03-31) 31 March 2004 (age 20) | 0 | 0 | Sporting CP | v. Germany, 22 November 2022 |
| MF | Dário Essugo | (2005-03-14) 14 March 2005 (age 19) | 0 | 0 | Sporting CP | v. Germany, 22 November 2022 |
| MF | Mateus Fernandes | (2004-07-10) 10 July 2004 (age 20) | 0 | 0 | Sporting CP | v. Germany, 22 November 2022 |
| FW | Rodrigo Ribeiro | (2005-04-28) 28 April 2005 (age 19) | 1 | 0 | Nottingham Forest | v. Germany, 22 November 2022 |
| FW | João Resende | (2003-03-26) 26 March 2003 (age 21) | 0 | 0 | Benfica | v. Germany, 22 November 2022 |

### Previous squads

FIFA U-20 World Cup
* 1979 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 1989 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 1991 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 1993 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 1995 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 1999 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
* 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup squads - Portugal
Toulon Tournament
* 2007 Toulon Tournament squads - Portugal
* 2011 Toulon Tournament squads - Portugal

### Most appearances

| # | Name | Caps | Goals | First cap | Latest cap |
| 1 | Tiago Ferreira | 28 | 2 | July 13, 2011 | July 3, 2013 |
| 2 | Paulo Costa | 20 | 5 | September 10, 1998 | June 3, 2000 |
| 2 | Sérgio Oliveira | 20 | 3 | October 7, 2010 | April 18, 2012 |
| 4 | Ricardo Esteves | 19 | 0 | September 10, 1998 | June 3, 2000 |
| 4 | Danilo Pereira | 19 | 3 | October 7, 2010 | August 21, 2011 |
| 4 | Pelé | 19 | 3 | October 7, 2010 | August 21, 2011 |
| 4 | Nuno Reis | 19 | 0 | October 7, 2010 | August 21, 2011 |
| 4 | Nélson Oliveira | 19 | 9 | October 7, 2010 | August 21, 2011 |

### Most goals

| # | Name | Goals | Caps | First cap | Latest cap |
| 1 | Nuno Gomes | 9 | 13 | June 2, 1995 | January 21, 1997 |
| 1 | Lourenço | 9 | 17 | 22 February 2001 | June 21, 2003 |
| 1 | Nélson Oliveira | 9 | 19 | October 7, 2010 | August 21, 2011 |
| 4 | André Silva | 8 | 10 | November 17, 2014 | June 14, 2015 |
| 5 | Bruma | 6 | 6 | March 24, 2013 | July 3, 2013 |
| 5 | Carlitos | 6 | 11 | May 27, 1997 | May 19, 1998 |
| 5 | Paulo Torres | 6 | 12 | December 18, 1990 | June 30, 1991 |
| 5 | Bruno Gama | 6 | 14 | November 21, 2006 | July 8, 2007 |
| 5 | Dani | 6 | 15 | August 26, 1994 | June 1, 1996 |
| 6 | Ricardo Vaz Tê | 5 | 8 | February 16, 2005 | September 22, 2005 |

### Notable players

* Luís Figo
* Rui Costa
* Fernando Couto
* Jorge Costa
* João Vieira Pinto
* Paulo Alves
* Paulo Sousa
* Nuno Capucho
* Rui Bento
* Emílio Peixe
* Abel Xavier
* Cristiano Ronaldo

## Head coaches

As of 2022
| Manager | Period | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record |
| Manager | Period | Matches | Won | Draw | Lost | GF | GA | GD |
| Peres Bandeira | 1979 | | | | | | | |
| Carlos Queiroz | 1989–1991 | | | | | | | |
| Agostinho Oliveira | 1993 | | | | | | | |
| Nelo Vingada | 1994–1995 | | | | | | | |
| Jesualdo Ferreira | 1996–2000 | | | | | | | |
| António Violante | 2001–2002 2008–2009 | | | | | | | |
| Rui Caçador | 2003–2004 2007–2008 | | | | | | | |
| José Couceiro | 2006–2007 | 21 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 37 | 8 | +29 |
| Paulo Alves | 2009–2010 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 3 | +6 |
| Oceano Cruz | 2010 | | | | | | | |
| Ilídio Vale | 2010–2012 | 24 | 9 | 12 | 3 | 27 | 20 | +7 |
| Edgar Borges | 2012–2014 2015–2016 | 29 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 17 | 12 | +5 |
| Hélio Sousa | 2014–2015 2018–2019 | 24 | 16 | 3 | 5 | 46 | 22 | +24 |
| Emílio Peixe | 2016–2017 2021–2022 | 19 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 33 | 29 | +4 |
| José Guilherme | 2017–2018 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 12 | -5 |
| Filipe Ramos | 2019–2020 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 13 | -6 |
| Rui Bento | 2020–2021 | | | | | | | |