SAN JOSE, Calif. – San Jose Earthquakes midfielder Cruz Medina has been called up by the United States Under-20 Youth National Team for the first training camp of 2025, which will take place in West Palm Beach, Florida, from Jan. 11-19.
Players born on or after Jan. 1, 2005, are age-eligible for this year’s FIFA U-20 World Cup, set for Sept. 27-Oct. 19 in Chile. For this training camp, head coach Marko Mitrović called up eight players born in 2005, nine born in 2006 and five born in 2007.
“With the World Cup on the horizon, we’re excited to get this year started together in Florida,” said Mitrović. “Each training camp has been a step forward for this group and we look forward to continuing the work towards our goals this week in Florida. Together with our Talent ID department, we’ve put together a strong, diverse group of players and I can’t wait to get started on the field.”
Medina, 18, recently led the Quakes’ MLS NEXT Pro team, The Town FC, to the Western Conference Semifinals for the second consecutive year, amassing three goals and one assist in 22 matches in 2024. One of only three Americans named to The Guardian’s 2023 Top 60 Best Young Talents in the World list, the San Francisco native signed a first-team contract as a Homegrown Player with San Jose in June 2022. Medina also won the U-15 Golden Ball at the 2021 MLS NEXT Cup with the Quakes Academy, which he joined in 2019 after featuring as a youth for San Francisco Glens SC and Bay City Soccer Club.
Internationally, Medina was called up to the U.S. U-19 team’s training camp in Morocco in 2024 before playing in the Concacaf U-20 Championships, scoring a goal and notching an assist as the U.S. were finalists. The midfielder starred for the U-17 United States Men’s Youth National Team in 2023, making the Concacaf U-17 Championship Best XI. He subsequently served as U.S. team captain in the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup group stage in Indonesia.
Mexico’s Youth National Team has also showed interest in Medina, calling him up to their U-20 training camp which he attended in March 2024.
