USA U20 vs Sweden U20 Prediction: Who will turn out to be stronger?

Prediction for the World Cup U20 match which will take place on January 5. Who will turn out to be stronger? Check the team conditions! Several betting options are available.

Team USA U20 came close to their sixth-ever triumph at the World Youth Championships. They last won the championship at the 2021 FIFA Youth World Cup, after which they were eliminated in the quarterfinals at the 2022 FIFA Youth World Cup. They won bronze medals at the 2023 FIFA Youth World Cup, beating Sweden 8:7 in the consolation final. The Americans came to the World Cup 2024 as one of the main favorites and justified their advances from the group stage, where they won all four games and went into the playoffs in first place. In the quarterfinals, the team easily beat the Latvians 7:2, but in the semifinals, they had a tough time with the Finns, losing after the first period - 0:2, but in the end, they still won 3:2.

The Swedish national team in the under-20 age category has fewer titles - only two. For the first time, they became world champions in 1981, and for the second time - in 2012. It was then that the Yellow-Blues experienced their best times, as from 2008 to 2014, they reached the final games five times, but on four occasions, they were left with silver medals. At the 2024 FIFA World Cup, they brought a very decent squad, which already impressed at the group stage, starting with three consecutive victories with a total score of 13:0. Still, in the final game, they lost to the Finns in a shootout - 4:5. That didn't stop the Swedes from advancing to the playoffs from first place, where they beat the Swiss and Czechs in turn - 3:2 and 5:2, respectively.

Teams USA and Sweden justified their status as the main favorites of the 2024 FIFA World Cup by reaching the final match. Both teams won their groups, and after that, although they struggled in the playoffs, their skills were enough to fight each other for the title. The favorites in this game are the Stars and Stripes, who have historically played the finals much better than the Yellow and Blue: the Americans have won 5 of 7 (71%) deciding games, while the Swedes have won 2 of 13 (15%). In addition, they have lost the last seven consecutive head-to-head meetings, so even the home crowd factor is unlikely to help them win.

The U.S. and Swedish teams often delight us with bright, goal-scoring confrontations at the Youth World Championships. In the last six head-to-head meetings, the rivals have combined for 50 goals (8.33 per game on average). In addition, they and Yellow-Blue met each other before the World Youth Hockey Championship 2024, when the Americans were stronger in a friendly match - 5:3. Now, there shouldn't be any problems with performance.