On Sunday, the selection committee chose India to play in the 2027 Asian Cup Qualifiers final round, which starts on March 25 of the next year, in a challenging group comprising Bangladesh, Hong Kong, and Singapore. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, hosted the draw, which saw 24 teams split up into six groups of four. Following the second round, only the six group winners will go to the main competition, which will take place in Saudi Arabia in 2027, joining the 18 teams that have already purchased tickets.
Between March 25, 2025, and March 31, 2026, the final round will take place over six match days in a home-and-away format.
India will play Bangladesh at home to start their Group C campaign with the goal of qualifying for the third time in a row.
With a ranking of 127, India leads the category, followed by Bangladesh (185), Singapore (161) and Hong Kong (156).
All three opponents have recently faced India. The Blue Tigers’ most recent matches were against Singapore (1-1 tie) in the Hung Thinh Friendly Tournament in Vietnam in September 2022, Hong Kong (India won 4-0) in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers in Kolkata in June 2022, and Bangladesh (1-1 draw) in the 2021 SAFF Championship.
Manolo Marquez, the head coach of India, stated, “We are a Pot 1 team and we need to show why we are the favorites to qualify,” following the draw. The groupings do not differ much from one another. Every group presents a challenge.
“With the help of their coach Ashley Westwood and naturalized players, Hong Kong has significantly improved.
Bangladesh, who have been our frequent opponents in the SAFF Championship, will be our first opponent in March. We need to win all six of our games to earn a spot in the Asian Cup. India’s schedule: India vs. Bangladesh, March 25, 2025 (home) India vs. Hong Kong (away) June 10, 2025 October 9, 2025: Singapore vs. India at home October 14, 2025:
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