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New Delhi, 10 December (Hindustan Reporter). India are in Group C of the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers Final Round along with Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangladesh. The 24 teams were divided into six groups of four each in the draw held at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur on Monday.
Only the six group winners will qualify and join the 18 teams that have already booked their tickets for the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 after the second round of qualifying. The Qualifier Final Round will be played over six match days in a home-and-away format between March 25, 2025, and March 31, 2026.
India, aiming to qualify for three consecutive Asian Cups for the first time in their history, will open their campaign against Bangladesh, a release said.
India has faced all three rivals in recent times. The Blue Tigers last faced Bangladesh in the 2021 SAFF Championship, Hong Kong in the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers in Kolkata in June 2022 and Singapore in the Hung Thinh friendly tournament in Vietnam in September 2022.
According to the FIFA rankings released in November, India is ranked 127th, Hong Kong 156th, Singapore 161st and Bangladesh 185th.
“We are a Pot 1 team and we need to show why we are favorites to qualify,” India head coach Manolo Marquez said after the draw. There is not much difference between the groups. Every group is difficult. Hong Kong have improved a lot with natural players and their coach Ashley Westwood, whom India played against in the World Cup qualifiers (when he was in charge of Afghanistan). We will first play against Bangladesh in March, who have been our regular rivals in the SAFF Championship. We know the calendar. We have six games and we have to top the group and qualify for the Asian Cup.”
India’s matches in the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers Final Round:
March 25, 2025: India vs Bangladesh (Home)
June 10, 2025: Hong Kong vs India (out)
October 9, 2025: India vs Singapore (Home)
October 14, 2025: Singapore vs India (out)
November 18, 2025: Bangladesh vs India (out)
March 31, 2026: India vs Hong Kong (Home)
AFC Asian Cup 2027 Qualifiers Final Round Full Draw Result:
Group A: Tajikistan, Philippines, Maldives, Timor-Leste
Group B: Lebanon, Yemen, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam
Group C: India, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangladesh
Group D: Thailand, Turkmenistan, Chinese Taipei, Sri Lanka
Group E: Syria, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Pakistan
Group F: Vietnam, Malaysia, Nepal, Laos.