However, there are still two available spots. IFAF has accepted applications from five countries that will take part in upcoming international qualifiers in hopes of capturing one of the tournament's remaining berths. The qualification process has already seen Europe confirm three teams to cross the Atlantic. National teams from Pan America and Oceania will qualify next.
IFAF Junior World Championship games between the world's eight best high school-aged (19 and under) national teams spanning four continents will be played in Canton's historic Fawcett Stadium, home of the NFL's annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, adjacent to the museum. It will be a busy week in Ohio for the national teams, as action will kick off on Saturday, June 27, and continue on Wednesday, July 1, and Saturday, July 4, before the Championship Game on Sunday, July 5.
"It is testament to the growth of the game of American football internationally that we have such a diverse group of countries from across the world who are determined to compete at the highest level of our sport," said IFAF President Tommy Wiking. More than 50 nations from five continents are IFAF members, each possessing a national federation dedicated solely to football.
Representing Pan America, the United States qualified automatically as the tournament's host country along with No. 1-seed Canada, whose junior national team has consistently impressed on international stages. The region's third representative will come from the Bahamas, Mexico or Panama.
The Bahamas will enter international competition for the first time and travel to Panama for a qualifier on Saturday, Jan. 24, in Panama City. The winner will then visit Mexico on Saturday, Feb. 14, in Mexico City for the right to join the extraordinary eight-team field in Northeast Ohio.
Oceania will be represented by either Australia or New Zealand, who will meet in Canberra, Australia, during the Australia Day weekend national holiday on Saturday, Jan. 24.
Wiking added: "Only a few years ago it would have been almost unthinkable that countries such as the Bahamas and Panama would be meeting in Central America in a qualifier of such magnitude, or that a battle for Antipodean pride would take place with the prize of playing in the world championship at stake."
"Hosting the world's best junior national football teams next door to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton will stand among the most significant international events in this sport's rich history," said USA Football Executive Director Scott Hallenbeck.
"On behalf of the United States, the Northeast Ohio region and the city of Canton, USA Football is proud to welcome players, coaches and families from four continents. Our languages and cultures may differentiate us, but we're united through our passion for American Football and the team-oriented values that it inspires."
Three representatives from Europe were determined at the eight-team 2008 European Junior Championship held in Spain in July. The top three nations - champion Germany, runner-up Sweden and third-place France - won the right to travel to America next summer.
Japan will fly the flag for Asia after the continent's other IFAF member countries, which are in the process of developing their junior programs, declined the entry invitation.