Junior Hoilett - International Career

International Career

Hoilett was born in Canada. As a child, he captained Canada's representative team at the 2001 Danone Nations Cup in Paris.

He is eligible to play for Canada or Jamaica at international level. In February 2011, he rejected a call-up from the Canadian national team stating that he wanted more time to develop his club career before committing to international football. In January 2012, the Jamaica Football Federation President Horace Burrell confirmed that he had approached the player's father about Hoilett representing Jamaica.

In March 2012, Hoilett told various media bodies that he would consider playing for the England national football team if eligible.

As Hoilett, his parents and grandparents were not born on the territory of The Football Association, Hoilett needed to meet additional criteria established between the associations of the Home Nations. The Home Nations do not offer eligibility to play for their national teams based solely on a residency requirement, instead they require players to be educated in the relevant Football Association's territory for five years before the age of 18.

While Hoilett joined Blackburn at 13 years of age and did spend five years under contract to the club before turning 18, his two years spent living in Germany on loan to SC Paderborn and St. Pauli mean that he is not eligible for the English national team under the terms of the "Home nations agreement" which prevents players becoming eligible through residency and from also removes the ability of require a foreign-national to undergo 5 years of education before the age of 18 in the territory of the Football Association.