[1] A total of eight teams played in the tournament, with players born on or after 1 January 2003 eligible to participate.

Same as previous editions held in even-numbered years, the tournament acted as the UEFA qualifiers for the FIFA U-20 World Cup.

The top five teams of the tournament qualified for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Argentina as the UEFA representatives.

Spain were the defending champions, having won the last tournament held in 2019, with the 2020 and 2021 editions cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe and the title was not awarded.

The draw for the qualifying round was held on 9 December 2020, 10:30 CET (UTC+1), at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland.