When will AFC Asian Cup 2027 Round 3 Qualifiers start?

India will look to qualify for the AFC Asian Cup for the third consecutive time.

India saw their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification dreams come to a heartbreaking end after losing their final second-round qualifier clash to Qatar. It was an extremely bitter loss because the Blue Tigers had taken the lead and held onto it before the Maroons scored a controversial equalizer that helped them make a late comeback and get a 2-1 win.

This also proved to be Igor Stimac’s final match in charge of the Indian side as he got his contract terminated by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) a few days after the loss. Amidst uncertainty over who the next head coach will be, India are at least guaranteed a spot in the third round of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers.

The Blue Tigers have qualified for the last two editions of the AFC Asian Cup and will be looking for qualification in their third straight Asian Cup campaign in 2027. What must be noted is that India have never qualified for the continental tournament three times in a row in the national team’s history. To improve their footing in Asian football and eventually climb up the rankings, the Indian side at least needs to qualify for the Asian Cup consistently.

Fortunately for the Blue Tigers and other teams in contention)=, the AFC Asian Cup 2027 round three qualifiers are still quite far away. The first matchday of the round three qualifiers will take place on 25 March 2025. It will be separated into six match days in a home and away-format.

The final seeding for all the teams that will participate in the third round of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers will only be finalized after the play-off rounds are done. Three teams are going to progress via the play-off round, which will be competed between teams like Sri Lanka, Cambodia, East Timor, Mongolia, Brunei and Macau.

These matches will happen on 5 September (first leg) and 10 September (second leg). Only after these playoffs are played will all the 24 teams to participate in the third round of the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers be set.

The draw for the third round qualifiers group stages will be done on 19 December 2024. Teams will be seeded based on their FIFA World rankings. India are likely to be in pot 1 of the group seedings alongside teams like Syria, Tajikistan and Thailand.

The teams on pot 1 are likely to get easier groups. The winners of each of the six groups in the third round of the qualifiers will get a direct entry into the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. The final matches of the third-round qualifiers will happen on 31 March 2026.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.