Kuala Lumpur, Dec 9 (IANS) India were drawn against Hong Kong, Singapore and Bangladesh in Group C of the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 Qualifiers final round. The draw, which saw 24 teams divided into six groups of four, was held at the AFC House here on Monday.
Only the six group winners will qualify and join the 18 teams who have already punched their tickets to the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 after the second round of qualifying. The Qualifiers final round will be contested over six match days in a home-and-away format between March 25, 2025 and March 31, 2026. India, aiming to qualify for three successive Asian Cups for the first time in their history, will begin their campaign at home against Bangladesh.
India have faced all three opponents in the recent past. 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.
As per the FIFA Rankings released in November, India are placed 127th, Hong Kong are 156th, Singapore are 161st and Bangladesh are 185th.
After the draw, India head coach Manolo Marquez said, “We are a Pot 1 team and we need to show why we are the favourites to qualify. There are not too many differences between groups. Every group is difficult. Hong Kong has improved a lot with naturalised players and with their coach Ashley Westwood, who India played against in the World Cup Qualifiers (while he was in charge of Afghanistan).
“We will play against Bangladesh first in March, who have been our regular opponents in the SAFF Championship. We know the calendar. We have six games and we need to top the group and qualify for the Asian Cup.”
India’s fixtures 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 (away)
October 9, 2025: India vs Singapore (home)
October 14, 2025: Singapore vs India (away)
November 18, 2025: Bangladesh vs India (away)
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
–IANS
ab/bc
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