Young Lions enjoy encouraging starts at FIFA U-17 World Cup | OneFootball

Florida's finest footballing city is in the process of making yet more waves in the global game with three young stars on show at this month's FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar.

Canada's Dylan Judelson, Venezuela's Gustavo Caraballo, and Haiti's Niko Pierre are all competing for what is the world's most prestigious honour for their age bracket, in doing so performing on the very same stage once graced by the likes of Ronaldinho, Cesc Fabregas, and Toni Kroos.

Let's take a look at how our Young Lions fared in their opening group games this week:

Late jubilation for Judelson and Canada

Canada U-17 made history on Wednesday by earning their first-ever victory in this competition, but they were certainly made to work for it.

James Bogere's opener for Uganda U-17 midway through the first half threatened an upset, but two late strikes from Elijah Roche and Marius Ayenero - the winner coming via a 98th-minute penalty - saw Canada steal the points at the death.

Judelson, who made 20 appearances for Orlando City B in MLS Next Pro in 2025, played the full 90 minutes, dictating the tempo of the game from his favoured deep-lying midfield role.

His performances for Orlando City U-18 were recognised with his inclusion in the 22-man Eastern Conference roster for the 2025 MLS NEXT All-Star Game earlier this year, and soon received his maiden call-up to Óscar Pareja's first-team squad for August's 5-1 Leagues Cup rout of Necaxa. The 17-year-old is still yet to make his senior debut, but his current trajectory hints that milestone isn't too far off.

Picking up a yellow card in that 2-1 victory over Uganda, Judelson is only one caution away from an automatic one-game suspension. However, with Canada looking well placed to progress out of Group K and into the knockout stages of the tournament, he can look forward to ample more opportunities to impress on the world stage.

Pierre shines in defeat

Heavy defeat to Egypt U-17 leaves Haiti U-17 in a much more precarious position heading into the second round of fixtures in Group E, but Niko Pierre will look back on Tuesday night as probably the most memorable moment of his fledgling career.

Haiti found themselves 2-0 down in the blink of an eye, but for seven brief minutes, Pierre's lethal 20-yard finish had them dreaming of an unlikely equaliser and point. Controlling a pass from Franco Celestin with his weaker left foot, he opened up space to shoot with his right beyond Omar Abdelaziz in the Egyptian goal.

The eventual 4-1 scoreline underlines the ultimate gulf in quality between these two footballing nations, but Orlando's young striker has every chance of adding to his tournament tally throughout the remainder of his time in Qatar.

Tuesday's strike is his third in just three games for his nation, following a debut brace against St Vincent and the Grenadines U-17 and a goalless hour against Antigua and Barbuda U-17, both in February.

Similarly stern tests await, mind - including a meeting with his Orlando teammate.

Caraballo's Venezuela shock England

In Group E's other opening-round match-up, Gustavo Caraballo's Venezuela U-17 ran out surprise 3-0 winners against tournament hopefuls England U-17.

Unfortunately, Orlando's 17-year-old winger failed to enter the game from the bench, as head coach Oswaldo Vizcarrondo opted instead for fresh legs in defence and midfield to help see out a 2-0 advantage. Eider Barrios added a third in second-half stoppage time, putting Venezuela in firm control of the group.

Caraballo is Orlando's most familiar face in Qatar, having made six appearances for Pareja's senior squad in 2025. Obviously, the most memorable of those is May's 5-0 thrashing of I-4 Derby nemesis Tampa Bay Rowdies, his full debut, in which he netted twice in the opening half.

Also finding the net in July's MLS NEXT All-Star Game, 2025 has been a stellar breakout year for Caraballo. With Ivan Angulo's struggles for form and Marco Pašalić rumoured to be on his way back to Europe, even more opportunities to impress may be just around the corner.

With games against Egypt U-17 and Pierre's Haiti U-17 up first, though, Caraballo will be eager to leave his mark on the global stage for the first time.