The United States U-20 men's national soccer team is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation. The highest level of competition in which the team competes is the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which is held every two years.
The United States' best finish came in the 1989 FIFA World Youth Championship, when the U.S. beat Iraq in the quarterfinal before losing to Nigeria in overtime in the semifinal and Brazil in the third-place match. Steve Snow tied for second in the tournament with three goals.
The U.S. reached the quarterfinals in 1993 but lost to Brazil. After missing out in 1995, the U.S. began a run of six consecutive qualifications in 1997, reaching the second round in five consecutive tournaments. Of those tournaments, the best U.S. performance came in 2003, when the U.S. reached the quarterfinal and led Argentina 1–0 in the final minutes before falling 2–1 in extra time. The U.S. also reached the quarterfinal of the 2007 Cup before losing 2–1 in extra time to Austria.