When will India play in AFC Asian Cup Round 3 Qualifiers?

Published at :June 18, 2024 at 9:43 AM

Modified at :June 18, 2024 at 11:56 AM

(Courtesy : AFC ASIAN CUP)

The Blue Tigers lost their last World Cup Qualifier against Qatar.

The Indian football team’s 2026 FIFA World Cup dream came to an end following their defeat to reigning Asian champions Qatar last week.

The Blue Tigers opened the scoring and were in the lead for the majority of the game, but a controversial equalizer followed by a winning goal from the home side tore India’s dream into shreds.

It was a campaign to forget for the national team. It all began with a motivating away victory against Kuwait in November 2023. This was followed by a heartbreaking defeat to Qatar at home and then a draw and a defeat against Afghanistan in March.

India wrapped up their second round fixtures with a 0-0 draw against Kuwait and a defeat to Qatar. In addition, Igor Stimac was fired shortly after Sunil Chhetri announced his retirement, leaving the national team in shambles.

What’s next for India?

Although India’s journey for the 2026 FIFA World Cup is over, they are still in contention to book a spot at the 2027 AFC Asian Cup to be held in Saudi Arabia. The Blue Tigers will have to go through the third round of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers.

There will be a total of 24 teams competing in the third round for the final six tickets to the 2027 AFC Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.

The 24-team roster will include three best-ranked losing teams from the first round, 18 third and fourth-placed teams from the second round and three winners from the playoff round.

All 24 teams will be divided into six groups of four teams each. The matches will be played in a home-and-away round-robin format and only the group winners from all the six groups will secure qualification to the 2027 AFC Asian Cup.

The third round will begin on March 25, 2025 and will go on until March 31, 2026 with all teams playing six games each.

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