Qantas Young Socceroos drawn with Brazil

The Qantas Young Socceroos have been drawn in Group E, alongside Brazil, Costa Rica and the Czech Republic, for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009 which will be played from 24 September to 16 October.

The Qantas Young Socceroos have been drawn in Group E, alongside Brazil, Costa Rica and the Czech Republic, for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009 which will be played from 24 September to 16 October.

The draw was made in the early hours of Monday morning (Australian time) at the ancient Luxor Temple on the banks of the Nile in Luxor, southern Egypt.

"It-s not an easy group,” said Qantas Young Socceroos Head Coach, Jan Versleijen.

“But you can expect at a World Cup that all matches will be challenging as you have the top countries participating.

“Brazil has qualified for more Under 20 World Cups than any other nation, and have won the tournament on four occasions.

“The Czech Republic were runners up in Canada in 2007 and the Costa Ricans are unknown but always produce great players with good skills .

“Our plan now is to get matches against European and South American opposition in the lead-up to the tournament, which will give our players plenty of experience in time for the opening match,” concluded Versleijen.

The Qantas Young Socceroos will be based in the north eastern city of Port Said during the first phase of the tournament and will play their play their first match against the Czech Republic on Sunday 27 September, and then face Costa Rica on Wednesday 30 September before their final group match against Brazil on Saturday 3 October. The host nation, Egypt, will meet Trinidad and Tobago in the opening match on Thursday 24 September at the Egyptian Army Stadium in Alexandria.

The Qantas Young Socceroos qualified for the FIFA U-20 World Cup having made the semi-finals of the AFC U-19 Youth Championships in Saudi Arabia last year.

The Qantas Young Socceroos will continue their preparations for the FIFA U-20 World Cup with a training camp in Europe next month which will include participation in the Terborg Tournament and the International Cor Groenewegen Tournement in the Netherlands.

FIFA U-20 World Cup 2009 groups:

Group A Egypt Trinidad & Tobago Paraguay Italy

Group B Nigeria Venezuela Spain Tahiti

Group C USA Germany Cameroon Korea Republic

Group D Ghana Uzbekistan England Uruguay

Group E Brazil Costa Rica Czech Republic Australia

Group F United Arab Emirates South Africa Honduras Hungary

Match Venues Group A - Cairo - Cairo International Stadium Group B - Cairo - Al Salam Stadium Group C - Suez - Mubarak Stadium Group D - Ismalia - Ismalia Stadium Group E - Port Said - Port Said Stadium Group F - Alexandria - Alexandria Stadium

For more information regarding the FIFA U-20 World Cup Egypt 2009, please visit www.fifa.com/egypt2009

For more information regarding the Turnborg Toernooi, please visit www.terborgtoernooi.nl

For more information regarding the International Cor Groenewegen Tournement, please visit www.icgt.nl