UNITED STATES U-20 head coach Marko Mitrovic today announced his roster for what is expected to be the team’s last camp before final World Cup preparations begin in mid-September. This camp will take place in Cairo, Egypt and the team will face Colombia on June 7 and hosts Egypt on June 10. This comes the morning after the U.S. team learned its draw.

On Thursday night, the U.S. U-20 team learned that it was placed into Group E with France, New Caledonia, and South Africa.

It has been a successful cycle for the U.S. U-20 team which qualified for the World Cup last summer under head coach Michael Nsien. Then when Mitrovic took over in October, the team has posted wins over Chile, France, South Korea, and Mexico along with a draw against Japan. This camp will now see the team face two more top teams at this age level.

Not surprisingly, this roster sees a lot of familiar faces from recent camps and we have an idea of most of Mitrovic’s first choice players. But with the U-20 World Cup taking place in September through October, getting players released for this tournament might be a significant problem as both MLS and all European leagues will be in session.

In that respect, Mitrovic might have to dig deeper into this player pool. In doing that, there are a few new players on this team and others who might have a high likelihood of being released.

Here is the roster along with some thoughts on it.

The U.S. U-20 June Roster

Goalkeepers (2): Gavin Beavers (Brondby/DEN; Henderson, Nev.), Diego Kochen (FC Barcelona/ESP; Miramar, Fla.)

Defenders (8): Matai Akinmboni (Bournemouth/ENG; Upper Marlboro, Md.), Reed Baker-Whiting (Seattle Sounders; Seattle, Wash.), Luca Bombino (San Diego FC; Saugus, Calif.), Noah Cobb (Atlanta United; Chattanooga, Tenn.), Tate Johnson (Vancouver Whitecaps/CAN; Tampa, Fla.), Ethan Kohler (Werder Bremen/GER; Campbell, Calif.), Nolan Norris (FC Dallas; Fort Worth, Texas), Francis Westfield (Philadelphia Union; Philadelphia, Pa.)

Midfielders (6): Matthew Corcoran (Nashville SC; Dallas, Texas), Benjamin Cremaschi (Inter Miami; Key Biscayne, Fla.), Taha Habroune (Columbus Crew; Columbus, Ohio), Sergio Oregel Jr. (Chicago Fire; Chicago, Ill.), Brooklyn Raines (Houston Dynamo; Chicago, Ill.), Pedro Soma (FC Barcelona/ESP; Coconut Creek, Fla.)

Forwards (6): Luke Brennan (Atlanta United; Atlanta, Ga.), Kristian Fletcher (D.C. United; Bowie, Md.), Zavier Gozo (Real Salt Lake; Eagle Mountain, Utah), Peyton Miller (New England Revolution; Unionville, Conn.), Serge Ngoma Jr. (New York Red Bulls; North Plainfield, N.J.), Marcos Zambrano (Vitoria Guimaraes/POR; Gladwyne, Pa.)

Interesting inclusions

The roster is mostly in line with the three previous FIFA-window camps that have taken place under Mitrovic. There are, however, three new call-ups for players who could be making a late push into the mix.

Tate Johnson: the Vancouver Whitecaps left back has taken advantage of big opportunities in recent months. Just last fall he was playing for the University of North Carolina. But then he opted for the MLS draft, found his way to Vancouver, and played a big role in the team’s push into first place in the West and in the final of the CONCACAF Cup. He will now have one chance to make his case to be a left back for the U-20 World Cup team.

Luca Bombino: was initially on the U.S. U-19 team but then shifted to the U-20 team. On loan from LAFC to San Diego, Bombino has been playing a lot of minutes for the expansion team at left back where he is playing well. With Johnson, Bombino, Nolan Norris, and Peyton Miller (who is listed as a forward but plays left back for New England), the left back position is highly competitive.

Serge Ngoma Jr.: Two years ago, the New York Red Bulls winger seemed as if he would be a top player for this age group. But he has battled injuries for most of the time since then. This year, however, he has been able to stay healthy and now has been rewarded with a call-up. The wing position is thin and Ngoma might have a real chance of making the team.

Release issues loom

As everyone knows, the big task for Mitrovic with this team is try to get many of his top players released. For some players, it simply might not be possible as clubs have the right to say no. If Mitrovic can get all of his MLS-based players, that will be a huge step forward. If he can get his players abroad who aren’t yet with first teams (Kohler, Soma, Zambrano, Kochen etc) that will also be a huge step. But at this point, some players might go out on loan this summer, some players might earn first-team promotions, and some players might be transferred. That makes it difficult for Mitrovic to even start the discussions now.

But looking ahead, the biggest challenges and biggest opportunities in terms of releases comes with the three top central defenders who are now based abroad with Mataki Akinmboni, Noahkai Banks, and Josh Wynder. If he can get two of those players to the World Cup, the team will be in a great spot. But on this roster, only Akinmboni is there.

Most top players are on this roster

There are a few key players not on this team. Cole Campbell has been injured since early March with Borussia Dortmund. Noahkai Banks is also not on the team. Josh Wynder is busy with Benfica and is not included. Niko Tsakiris has been injured for San Jose.

After those absences, most top players are here. That should make this team competitive in this camp.



While maybe not top players, it is important to note that Nolan Norris, Ethan Kohler, and Taha Habroune have been at all eight camps this cycle. That bodes well that they will likely be called-up to the World Cup team

Players with the most to gain this camp

In addition to the newcomers listed above, there are a few other players who have a massive opportunity at this camp.

Peyton Miller is one of the top American teenagers right now and he is playing up a U-20 cycle with this team. Listed as a forward, he has shown a big ceiling playing left back for the New England Revolution. He has a chance to be a World Cup starter in the fall if he continues to perform well in these U-20 camps.

Zavier Gozo is also playing up a cycle and his minutes have increased with Real Salt Lake. He can add some size and strength to the U.S. U-20 team’s attack.

Sergio Oregel Jr. has been among the first team minutes leaders among this U-20 pool. The Chicago central midfielder isn’t a lock to make the World Cup team but this camp can/should put him on the inside of this bubble. The fact that he made this roster over Johnny Shore (who is with the U.S. U-19 team) is a telling sign that Oregel has a real chance to go to Chile. He just needs to play well.

Matthew Corcoran is in a similar situation as Oregel as he is in a tight race to make the World Cup team. Oregel, Corcoran, and Shore seem to be going for one or two spots on the World Cup team. The 2007-born Shore isn’t here and this gives Corcoran a big chance.

U-20 World Cup draw set

The U-20 World Cup draw took place Thursday night and the United States was drawn into Group E along with New Caledonia, France, and South Africa.

The top two teams along with the four best third place teams all qualify for the knockouts.

The U.S. U-20 learned their World Cup draw last night
- USA, New Caledonia, France, South Africa.
- Not a bad group when you consider France will struggle with releases
- Mexico was given the Group of Death. pic.twitter.com/V6dgiUy5Rg

— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) May 30, 2025

It’s always hard to gauge whether a draw is good or not at the youth levels. France is a powerhouse in world soccer, but they could struggle mightily with getting players released – as they did in 2023.

Judging by historical data, Mexico was given a very difficult draw with Spain, Brazil, and Morocco.

Here is the schedule for the U.S. U-20 team with all of the team’s games taking place in Rancagua at Estadio Braden Copper Co.

• U.S. vs. New Caledonia: Monday, September 29
• U.S. vs. France: Thursday, October 2
• U.S. vs. South Africa: Sunday, October 5