India drawn with Maldives, Pak in SAFF Championship 2026

Defending champions India have been drawn with Maldives and Pakistan in Group B of the SAFF Championship 2026, following the draw conducted in Thimphu, Bhutan, on Saturday.

The 15th edition of the sub-continental football tournament will be hosted in Dhaka from November 4-17. Chasing a record-extending 10th SAFF championship title, India will begin their campaign against Maldives on November 5 before taking on Pakistan on November 11.

Hosts Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Bhutan are placed in Group A.

In the event that FIFA’s suspension of the All Nepal Football Association is lifted by September 1, Nepal will be included in Group A.

If the suspension stays, the SAFF Championship 2026 will go ahead with six teams.

The top two teams from each group will qualify for the semi-finals, with Group A winners meeting Group B runners-up and vice-versa.

The semi-finals will take place on November 14, and the final will be on November 17. India have a splendid head-to-head record against both their group stage opponents.

The Blue Tigers have won 16 of the 25 meetings against Pakistan, drawing seven and losing only two.

Their last face-off was in the SAFF Championship 2023, with India securing a dominant 4-0 win. Against Maldives, India have a record of 13 wins, two draws and three losses in 18 encounters. The last meeting was in a friendly in March 2025 when the hosts clinched a 3-0 win in Shillong.

India have won the SAFF Championship on nine previous occasions — 1993, 1997, 1999, 2005, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2021, and the last in 2023, when the Blue Tigers defeated guest side Kuwait in a memorable final in Bengaluru.