Atlético Ottawa defender Sergei Kozlovskiy has been named to Canada Soccer’s 21-player squad for the upcoming 2026 Concacaf U-20 Qualifiers in Nicaragua from February 26th to March 4th.
Kozlovskiy (17) will remain with Atlético Ottawa for their leg two Concacaf Champions Cup match against Nashville SC on February 24th, after which he will rejoin the Canada squad in Nicaragua. Result dependent, Kozlovskiy will rejoin Ottawa between March 3 and 5.
Kozlovskiy was named to the starting XI for Ottawa’s leg one match on February 17th against Nashville, completing the full 90 minutes in his first match against Major League Soccer opposition. The defender also made 20 appearances for Atlético in 2025, contributing 1,547 minutes of the league-leading tally of 8,035 minutes played by domestic U-21 players.
“I’m really grateful to be representing my country,” said Atlético’s Sergei Kozlovskiy. “This opportunity means the world. It’s a real honour to be wearing the badge once again!”
Kozlovskiy is one of five Canadian Premier League (CPL) players selected as part of Canada’s U-20 squad, including Zayne Bruno & Emmanuel Marmolejo (Forge FC), James McGlinchey (Cavalry FC) and Shola Jimoh (Inter Toronto FC).
Canada was drawn in Group F for the 2026 Concacaf U-20 Qualifiers alongside Nicaragua, Aruba, Martinique, US Virgin Islands. Group winners will advance to the 2026 Concacaf U-20 Championship this summer, joining the six top-ranked nations that are pre-qualified directly to the tournament. The Championship will determine Concacaf's entrants for the 2027 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, as well as the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
Canada will play the US Virgin Islands on 26 February, Martinique on 28 February, Aruba on 2 March and Nicaragua on 4 March at Estadio Miguel Chocorrón Buitrago in Managua.
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