The USA Men’s U20s have drawn Pool C for the 2026 Junior World Championships seeing them open against Argentina, followed by England and Ireland before progressing out of the pool stages.
World Rugby have confirmed the dates and match schedule for the expanded 16-team tournament which has been rebranded off the legacy of the U20 Championships with a new format featuring four pools of four teams. The USA return to the tournament for the first time in over 10 years and will kick off their matches in Pool C in Tbilisi’s Avchala Stadium on June 27th.
JWC 2026 will span across five weekends with the final to be played on July 18th at the Mikheil Meskhi Stadium in Tbilisi.
With draws confirmed, Head Coach, Johannes Neets Gericke is eager to challenge the pathways players for the task ahead;
“This competition will be all tier 1 nations which is something USA Rugby U20's have not experienced in over 10 years. The challenge for us now, knowing who we are facing, is to work as hard as we can to get to the physical standard the JWC demands.”
“The top 30 USA Rugby U20's players will experience a speed of play they have not yet been exposed to before. They will play against players who have already signed professional contracts and give our players a taste of how rugby is played at the next level.”
“The physical preparation, mental preparation and the competition in itself, will be a platform to elevate players’ understanding of what it takes to become an Eagle.”
Looking ahead at building success, the pathways programs continues it’s focus on developing players to an elite level. He continued;
“We just finished a successful winter camp with a lot of great work accomplished. Looking forward, we will assemble the first weekend in April, following the conclusion of the regular CRAA season and before the play-off rounds start. Our second assembly, and the big one, will be May 17th where we look to build our on-field connections and get some games in before we depart for Georgia, mid June.”
With a set focus and plan ahead coaches and players will also pay close attention to tackle technique with this being the first international competition trialing the lower tackle height.
The Junior World Championship 2026 commitment to player welfare, featuring a trial of lowering the tackle height will enhance safety and reduce head contact, building on successful trials at community and domestic levels.
Pool A: South Africa, Wales, Georgia, Uruguay
Pool B: New Zealand, Italy, Scotland, Japan
Pool C: Argentina, England, Ireland, USA
Pool D: France, Australia, Spain, Fiji
Four pool winners will progress to the semi-finals, while second-placed teams will compete for fifth to eighth place. Third and fourth-placed teams will contest rankings from ninth to 12th and 13th to 16th respectively, with seeding based on pool-stage competition points. Knockout stages will be played across two days per round, culminating in the third-place play-off and final at Mikheil Meskhi Stadium in Tbilisi on 18 July.
All 3 matches played at Avchala Stadium in Tbilisi
USA v Argentina: Saturday June 27th | 5:00am ET
USA V England: Thursday July 2nd | 10:00am ET
USA v Ireland: Tuesday July 7th | 5:00am ET
