World Juniors teams, rosters, format and more to know about 2024 IIHF hockey tournament

Bryan Murphy

World Juniors teams, rosters, format and more to know about 2024 IIHF hockey tournament image

It's the most wonderful time of the year ... on the ice. 

With Christmas in the rear view and New Year's Eve on the horizon, that can only mean one thing in the hockey world — the World Juniors. 

The 2024 edition of the tournament is set to kick off on Boxing Day, as 10 teams from around the globe are meeting in Sweden this year for the annual competition. The event features the best U20 hockey players, giving them a chance to compete on arguably the biggest stage in their young careers. 

Canada enters the competition as the defending, back-to-back gold medalist, looking to become the first team to three-peat since the Canadians won four in a row in the late 2000s. 

Here's the rest of the information you need to know about the 2024 World Junior hockey tournament.

Which teams compete in the World Junior Championships?

Each year, 10 teams compete in the top World Juniors tournament. 

The current format has been in place since 1996, consisting of the top 10 countries in the world. Since the tournament got its official start in 1977, Canada, Sweden, Czechia, Finland and the United States have participated in every tournament. Slovakia has competed in every tournament since the 10-team format was introduced in 1996, following the dissolution of Czechoslovakia.

The tournament, which is considered to be the top pool, typically has one team that will be relegated to Division I, and the winner of Division I will be promoted to the top tournament for next year. 

Numerous other countries have participated in the top tournament including Switzerland, Latvia, Germany, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Austria, Denmark, France, Poland, Japan, Norway and Ukraine.

What teams are competing at the 2024 World Juniors?

Group A Group B
Canada Czechia
Finland USA
Sweden Switzerland
Germany Slovakia
Latvia Norway

Russia is still serving its indefinite ban after the IIHF instituted a suspension on all Russian and Belarusian national teams from competing in international play after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. 

Norway is making its first appearance at the top U20 tournament since 2014 after earning the promotion last year with its win at the Division I level. The country takes the spot of Austria, which was relegated after finishing 10th at the 2023 World Juniors. 

2024 World Juniors odds

Heading into the tournament, it is a four-horse race between USA, Canada, Sweden and Finland for gold, according to the oddsmakers. 

Here is a look at the odds to win the 2024 World Juniors before the beginning of the tournament courtesy of Sports Interaction:

Team Odds
USA +225
Canada +250
Sweden +275
Finland +525
Czechia +1500
Slovakia +5000
Switzerland +6600
Germany +10000
Latvia +30000
Norway +50000

What is the format of the 2024 World Juniors?

Teams will play four preliminary games in a round-robin format within their group, followed by a three-round playoff.

In the group stage, teams earn three points for a regulation win, two points for an overtime win, one point for an overtime loss and no points for a regulation loss.

The top four teams from each group advance to the quarterfinals, where the matchups are determined by seeding. They will cross over between groups for these games: 1A vs. 4B, 1B vs. 4A, 2A vs. 3B and 2B vs. 3A. The teams that advance to the semifinals will be reseeded. 

The winners of the semifinals will face off in the gold medal game. The losers will play for bronze. 

Who will be representing each team at the World Juniors?

In order to be able to participate in the World Juniors, a player must be under the age of 20 as of December 31st of the tournament year. 

With these requirements in place, the field of players is mostly between the ages of 17 and 19 years old.

In total, each country's roster is made up of 25 players. Most will have 14 forwards, eight defensemen and three goaltenders. They can dress 23 players per game, meaning there will be two healthy scratches for each team in every contest. 

What country has won the most World Juniors medals?

Canada enters the 2024 tournament with the most gold medals of all time. The 2023 win marked the 20th gold medal for the country. 

But Russia, which is not participating in the 2024 World Juniors, owns the most total medals with 37. It has won the most silver and bronze medals out of any country, while owning the second-most golds. 

The United States is tied for the third-most gold medals with Finland and has the sixth-most total medals. 

Country Gold Silver Bronze Total
Canada 20 10 5 35
Russia* 13 13 11 37
Finland 5 5 7 17
United States 5 2 7 14
Sweden 2 11 7 20
Czechia+ 2 6 7 15
Slovakia 0 0 2 2
Switzerland 0 0 1 1

* Includes medals won as the Soviet Union and CIS
+ Includes medals won as Czechoslovakia and Czech Republic

Who has won the World Juniors in the past?

History of IIHF World Junior Championships
YEAR-LOCATION GOLD SILVER BRONZE
2023 - Halifax/Moncton, Canada Canada Czechia USA
2022 - Edmonton, Canada Canada Finland Sweden
2021 - Edmonton, Canada United States Canada Finland
2020 - Ostrava/Trinec, Czech Republic Canada Russia Sweden
2019 - Vancouver/Victoria, Canada Finland United States Russia
2018 - Buffalo, N.Y. Canada Sweden United States
2017 - Montreal and Toronto, Canada United States Canada Russia
2016 - Helsinki, Finland Finland Russia United States
2015 - Montreal/Toronto, Canada Canada Russia Slovakia
2014 - Malmo, Sweden Finland Sweden Russia
2013 - Ufa, Russia United States Sweden Russia
2012 - Calgary/Edmonton, Canada Sweden Russia Canada
2011 - Buffalo/Niagara, N.Y. Russia   Canada   United States
2010  Regina/Saskatoon, Canada United States Canada   Sweden  
2009 - Ottawa, Canada Canada   Sweden   Russia  
2008 - Pardubice/Liberec, Czech Republic Canada   Sweden   Russia  
2007 - Leksand/Mora, Sweden Canada   Russia   United States
2006 - Kamloops/Kelowna/Vancouver, Canada Canada   Russia   Finland  
2005 - Grand Forks, N.D./Thief River Falls, Minn. Canada   Russia   Czech Republic  
2004 - Helsinki/Hameenlinna, Finland United States Canada   Finland  
2003 - Halifax/Sydney, Canada Russia   Canada   Finland  
2002 - Pardubice/Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic Russia   Canada   Finland  
2001 - Moscow/Podolsk, Russia Czech Republic   Finland   Canada  
2000 - Skelleftea/Umea, Sweden Czech Republic   Russia   Canada  
1999 - Winnipeg, Canada Russia   Canada   Slovakia  
1998 - Helsinki/Hameenlinna, Finland Finland   Russia   Switzerland  
1997 - Geneva/Morges, Switzerland Canada   United States Russia  
1996 - Boston, Mass. Canada   Sweden   Russia  
1995 - Red Deer, Canada Canada   Russia   Sweden  
1994 - Ostrava/Frydek-Mistek, Czech Republic Canada   Sweden   Russia  
1993 - Gavle/Fulun, Sweden Canada   Sweden   Czechoslovakia  
1992-  Fussen/Kaufbeuren, Germany CIS   Sweden   United States
1991 - Saskatoon, Canada Canada   Soviet Union   Czechoslovakia  
1990 - Helsinki/Turku, Finland Canada   Soviet Union   Czechoslovakia  
1989 - Anchorage, Alaska, United States Soviet Union   Sweden   Czechoslovakia  
1988 - Moscow, Soviet Union Canada   Soviet Union   Finland  
1987 - Piestany, Czechoslovakia Finland   Czechoslovakia   Sweden  
1986 - Hamilton, Canada Soviet Union   Canada   United States
1985 - Helsinki/Turku, Finland Canada   Czechoslovakia   Soviet Union  
1984 - Nykoping, Sweden Soviet Union   Finland   Czechoslovakia  
1983 - Leningrad, Soviet Union Soviet Union   Czechoslovakia   Canada  
1982 - Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn. Canada   Czechoslovakia   Finland  
1981 - Fussen/Augsburg, Germany Sweden   Finland   Soviet Union  
1980 - Helsinki, Finland Soviet Union   Finland   Sweden  
1979 - Karlstad, Sweden Soviet Union   Czechoslovakia   Sweden  
1978 - Montreal, Canada Soviet Union   Sweden   Canada  
1977 - Bystrica-Zvolen, Czechoslovakia Soviet Union   Canada   Czechoslovakia  
1976* - Tampere, Finland Soviet Union   Canada   Czechoslovakia  
1975* - U.S./Canada Soviet Union   Canada   Sweden  
1974* - Leningrad, Soviet Union Soviet Union   Finland   Canada 

* - IIHF began officially sponsoring World Junior Championship in 1977

Bryan Murphy

Bryan Murphy Photo

Bryan Murphy joined The Sporting News in 2022 as the NHL/Canada content producer. Previously he worked for NBC Sports on their national news desk reporting on breaking news for the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, in addition to covering the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games. A graduate of Quinnipiac University, he spent time in college as a beat reporter covering the men’s ice hockey team.