The 2025 World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championship is set for August 15-24 on Jeju Island in South Korea. 20 teams will compete, split in five groups for pool play, followed by playoffs that will include quarterfinals, semifinals and medal games.
The full schedule for the event can be found here.
Pool B includes four teams with a blend of experience. Japan is coming off a fifth-place finish in 2022, matching its best-ever result, while Ghana will make its first appearance at any World Lacrosse championship. The Netherlands returns for its second U20 appearance, and Hong Kong, China, will play in its third tournament after finishing 14th in 2022.
Update: As announced on August 14, Ghana has been withdrawn from the championship.
Jump to: Games to Watch
Netherlands vs Sweden, 11th August 2022.
Hong Kong China vs Sweden, 18th August 2022.
Ghana
Ghana will make its first appearance at the World Lacrosse Men’s U20 Championship in 2025, marking the country’s debut at any World Lacrosse event.
The team is led by head coach Ryan Pratcher-Bey, who serves as lacrosse program director for Baltimore Terps Youth Sports, assistant coach at Patterson High School and head coach for Coppin State University club lacrosse. Assistant coach Kwamina Enu Thompson has been instrumental in developing grassroots lacrosse in Ghana, leading the men’s and women’s teams to back-to-back titles at the Wildfire Lacrosse Sixes Tournament, Africa’s largest lacrosse event, in 2023 and 2024.
Defender Patrick Nyarko competes at NCAA Division II University of the District of Columbia. In two seasons, he has appeared in 22 games, starting 21, and has recorded 74 ground balls and 40 caused turnovers.
Attackman Elvis Prempeh, a freshman at NCAA Division III Mount Saint Vincent, posted 38 points on 34 goals and four assists, along with 34 ground balls. He closed his rookie season with hat tricks in three of his final four games.
High school standout Augustine Quainoo of Methodist High School in Saltpond was named MVP of the 2024 Wildfire Lacrosse Sixes Tournament after scoring eight goals and adding four assists.
Hong Kong, China
Hong Kong, China, will make its third appearance at the Men’s U20 Championship in 2025. The team’s best finish came in its debut in 2016, placing 11th. Hong Kong finished 14th in 2022.
The team is coached by Kei Chan, a longtime national team member who competed at the 2023 World Lacrosse Men’s Championship and the 2024 World Lacrosse Box Championship. Chan also serves as development officer for the Hong Kong, China Lacrosse Association.
Kevin Ng, Rick Yip, Mike Mak, Baron Lee, Bosco Lo and Jason Ip are teammates at the University of Hong Kong.
Carter Li, a sophomore at NCAA Division II Seton Hill, played with head coach Kei Chan at the 2024 Box Championship and was the youngest member of that team. Li is coming off a breakout season, tallying 26 goals and 12 assists for the Griffins.
Japan
Japan will compete in its seventh Men’s U20 Championship in 2025. The team tied its best-ever finish in 2022, placing fifth, a result that matched its performance as tournament host in 1996. Japan has never finished outside the fifth through seventh place range.
Daisuke Yamamoto will serve as head coach after working as an assistant coach for Japan at the 2024 World Lacrosse Box Championship, where the team placed eighth. Yamamoto is also the head coach at Aoyama Gakuin University.
Japan’s roster enters with built-in chemistry. Yuta Usui, Taisuke Ushiyama, Oikawa Taisei and Zumi Kondo are teammates at Nippon Sports Science University, while Ryo Minegishi, Keitaro Kishi and Jinichiro Sato all play at Keio University.
Midfielder Kai Hayami, a freshman at Roanoke College, appeared in 13 games in 2025, totaling three points on two goals and one assist while adding 12 ground balls and three caused turnovers.
Faceoff specialist Kyle Hata, a three-star recruit committed to Maryland, is a dual-sport athlete who also played hockey at Choate Rosemary Hall in Connecticut.
Netherlands
The Netherlands will make its second appearance at the Men’s U20 Championship after placing 13th in its 2022 debut.
The team is coached by Wilco Mulder, who led the Netherlands at the 2024 Men’s U20 European Championship. Assistant coach Andrew Dowdell has been involved with the national program since 2004 and competed for the Netherlands at the 2006 Men’s World Championship.
The Netherlands enters as one of the more experienced squads in international competition. Returners from the 2022 U21 team include Ivan Barreiro Gayoso and Ken Chin, while Jasper Tessel, Joey Lin, Tanner Crites and Mikai Semeins all played in the 2024 Men’s U20 European Championship. Tessel scored six goals, including two against Czechia, while Semeins added one goal.
Freshman midfielder Callum Winter of Robert Morris University recorded four points on a goal and three assists, along with seven ground balls in 2025.
Defender Sam Van Eekeren of NCAA Division III Adrian College has appeared in 11 games across two seasons, contributing one goal, nine ground balls and one caused turnover.
Games to Watch
Ghana vs. Hong Kong, China // Friday, Aug. 15, 9 a.m.
Ghana’s first-ever World Lacrosse championship game will come against a Hong Kong team playing in its third tournament. Both teams will be eager to start their campaigns in Jeju with a win.
Japan vs. Netherlands // Friday, Aug. 15, 7 p.m.
This matchup will feature the most experienced teams in Pool B. Japan will look to open strong after its fifth-place finish in 2022, while the Netherlands seeks an early statement win in just its second tournament appearance.
Hong Kong, China vs. Netherlands // Monday, Aug. 18, 4 p.m.
The matchup marks the penultimate game of group play in Pool B and serves as a rematch of the 2022 Men’s U21 Championship Consolation Bracket final. In that contest, the Netherlands defeated Hong Kong 12-7 to secure 13th place, and their meeting in 2025 could have massive playoff implications.
