The CONCACAF Under-20 Championship is a biennial tournament that decides the regional youth champion and determines the confederation's four qualifiers for the U-20 World Cup.
Begun in 1962, it is the second-oldest international competition in CONCACAF. Originally staged to crown a single champion, it did so 16 times, and doubled as qualifier for the U-20 World Cup beginning in 1976. Beginning in 1998, the final round of the event was split into two groups of four, with two teams in each group advancing to the world championship without a title winner being crowned.
In 2009, the tournament's finale reverted to a competition consisting of two groups contested in a single country, Trinidad & Tobago, to determine a single champion. In 2011, it increased to a 12-team tourney, with North America granted three berths in the finals, Canada, Mexico and the United States; Central American awarded four and the Caribbean five.
CONCACAF Under-20 Championships
| Year | Venue | Champion |
| 1962 | Panama | Mexico |
| 1964 | Guatemala | El Salvador |
| 1970 | Cuba | Mexico |
| 1973 | Mexico | Mexico |
| 1974 | Canada | Mexico |
| Year | Venue | World Cup Qualifiers |
| 1976 | Puerto Rico | Honduras, *Mexico |
| 1978 | Honduras | Canada, *Mexico |
| 1980 | United States | *Mexico, United States |
| 1982 | Guatemala | ^United States |
| 1984 | Trinidad & Tobago | Canada, *Mexico |
| 1986 | Trinidad & Tobago | *Canada, United States |
| 1988 | Guatemala | *Costa Rica, United States |
| 1990 | Guatemala | *Mexico, Trinidad & Tobago |
| 1992 | Canada | *Mexico, United States |
| 1994 | Honduras | Costa Rica, *Honduras |
| 1996 | Mexico | *Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, United States |
| 1998 | Guatemala, Trinidad & Tobago | Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico, United States |
| 2001 | Canada, Trinidad & Tobago | Canada, Costa Rica, Jamaica, United States |
| 2002 | Panama, United States | Canada, Mexico, Panama, United States |
| 2005 | Honduras, United States | Canada, Honduras, Panama, United States |
| 2007 | Panama, Mexico | Canada, Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama, United States |
| 2009 | Trinidad & Tobago | *Costa Rica, United States, Honduras, Trinidad & Tobago |
| 2011 | Guatemala | Costa Rica, Guatemala, *Mexico, Panama |
*Champion (1998-2007 no title awarded)
^Honduras disqualified for ineligible player, United States qualified for Youth World Championship
