ISF Football World cup 2026
October 17 – 26 | Suzhou, P.R.China
#ISFsports #ISFfootball
Participation
GENDER
Boys & Girls
COMPETITION FORMAT
Team Competition
AGE CATEGORY
U18
(2008 – 2009 – 2010 – 2011)
There is NO limit to the number of teams per gender, by delegation
The following students may take part in the ISF events as part of the team :
- The students are enrolled as full-time students at a school in the country in which they represent.
- The student-athletes must be attending schools that provide general education and/or vocational education incorporating segments of general education.
- Only the students registered on the team list that was handed in at accreditation are authorized to take part in this competition.
The following are not eligible to participate:
- Attendees of vocational schools only attend school as a complement to their vocational training and are not full-time students with a segment of general education.
- Students enrolled at schools that provide sports training without any general education.
Each delegation may enter more than 1 team per gender category. The number of venues can accommodate up to 64 participating teams based on the principle of proximity. All member nations and regions are welcome to register. If the number of teams exceeds 64, ISF will work with the organizing committee to determine and finalize the selection criteria.
International School Sport Federation
- Office – admin@isfsports.org
- Sport department – sport@isfsports.org
- Event department – registration@isfsports.org
- Communication department – communication@isfsports.org
- Finance department – finance@isfsports.org
Local Organising Committee
Organising Committee of ISF Football World Cup – China 2026
suzhou2026@vip.163.com; jason.dong7@qq.com;
wangjiangang@fusc.org.cn; aimee.zhang815@qq.com
Event Programme
* Please note that the provisional program is subject to change. Any relevant changes will be communicated in the Bulletin 2.
About Suzhou
Profound Historical Heritage and Robust Socioeconomic Foundation
Suzhou, a UNESCO-listed historic city with over 2,500 years of history, is a core city in the Yangtze River Delta.
By the end of 2024, the city’s registered population was 7.868 million, and its permanent population was 12.958 million. As a renowned historical and cultural city and significant scenic tourism destination in China, Suzhou boasts over 2,500 years of urban history and is celebrated as an “earthly paradise”.
As a typical Jiangnan water town, Suzhou encompasses two-thirds of Taihu Lake’s shoreline, three-quarters of its surface area, and four-fifths of its islands, crisscrossed by more than 20,000 rivers and dotted with 401 lakes.
Suzhou is not only home to world cultural heritage such as classical gardens, silk embroidery, Kunqu Opera, and Pingtan (traditional Chinese storytelling with music), but also a pioneer in China’s reform and opening-up and a model of modernization.
It has opening-up platforms such as the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park, Kunshan Deepening Cross-Strait Industrial Cooperation Pilot Zone, China-Japan (Suzhou) Local Development Cooperation Demonstration Zone, and Jiangsu Pilot Free Trade Zone (Suzhou Area).
A total of 178 Fortune Global 500 companies have invested in 493 projects in Suzhou, with cumulative utilized foreign capital nearing 167 billion USD. Suzhou Port handles over 10 million TEUs annually.
As a national high-tech industrial base, Suzhou leads innovation in artificial intelligence, biomedicine, and nanotechnology. In 2024, Suzhou’s regional GDP exceeded 2.67 trillion CNY (ranking sixth nationally). Annual R&D expenditure surpassed 110 billion CNY, accounting for approximately 4.15% of GDP. The city is home to 17,500 national high-tech enterprises (ranking fourth nationally) and ranks third nationally in STAR Market-listed companies. This robust economic strength provides a solid foundation for hosting world-class international
events.
Vibrant Mass Sports Culture and Dynamic Football Development Momentum
Football enjoys broad popularity in Suzhou, with over 320 standard football fields, nearly 20,000 registered football players, and a professional China League One club (Suzhou Dongwu Football Club). In 2022, Suzhou was designated a “National Key Football Development City.”
Youth football is developing vigorously. Currently, 3 national youth campus football pilot counties (districts) have been established (Zhangjiagang, Gusu District, and Wuzhong District), along with 364 national youth campus football specialist schools. The youth football tournament is extensively organized annually in universities, middle and primary schools across the city, with more than 300,000 teenagers participating in football activities year-round.
Suzhou possesses extensive and mature experience in event organization, venue operations, security, hospitality services, medical support, and volunteer management.
Suzhou possesses a highly developed comprehensive transportation network, an advanced medical system, extensive hospitality facilities, and a smart city management framework—all essential capabilities for hosting major high-profile international events.
Your dreams start here
We are looking forward to seeing you in
Suzhou
About ISF Football
ISF football competitions originate from ISF World School Championships (WSC) which have been organised 27 times in 51 years starting back in 1972 with the last edition in 2023. In 2022, at the occasion of 50th anniversary of ISF WSC Football, in order to reform ISF football events and to develop another flagship event of the ISF, ISF Football World Cup (FWC) was launched, with P.R. China obtaining the hosting rights of the first three consecutive ISF Football World Cups in 2024, 2026 and 2028.
Inheriting the origins of the ISF WSC Football, ISF FWC is an event characterised by a balanced program between sport and educational content: the balance between sport and education is to create awareness about the role of sports in putting forward topics such as fair play, healthy lifestyle, respect, and inclusion. The educational program and sport format of the event is always adapted to the age of participants.
ISF FWC is open to the participation of all students attending a school that provides general education and/or vocational education incorporating segments of general education. Each delegation may enter the competition with more than one team per category.
History of ISF Football Events
