2026 SAFF Club Championship

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2026 SAFF Club Championship
लपेटें लप्पड़ लफ़्ज़ लफ़्ज़ 2026
Tournament details
Host countryIndia
DatesJuly [1] [2]
Teams8 (from 7 associations)
Venue(s)7 (in 8 host cities)
2027 →

2026 SAFF Club Championship will be the inaugural edition of the SAFF Club Championship, an international men's club football championship of South Asian countries organised by the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF). It was stalled for over a decade due to lack of sponsors. [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]

Contents

Format

Initially, a centralized venue was planned for the tournament. Eventually, a home-and-away format was finalized as the AIFF expressed reservations over allotting two weeks during the regular Indian football calendar. It was planned to be held in 2024, but postponed to 2026. [8] [9]

Association team allocation

A total of 8 teams from 7 SAFF member associations are set to participate in the 2026 SAFF Club Championship. The association ranking based on the AFC member assosciation coefficient rankings is used to determine the number of participating teams for each association. This will include two teams from India and one team from Maldives, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. [10] [11]

Participation for 2026 SAFF Club Championship
Participating
Not participating
SAFF rankMember associationSlots
1 Flag of India.svg India 2
2 Flag of Bangladesh.svg Bangladesh 1
3 Flag of Maldives.svg Maldives 1
4 Flag of Nepal.svg Nepal 1
5 Flag of Sri Lanka.svg Sri Lanka 1
6 Flag of Bhutan.svg Bhutan 1
7 Flag of Pakistan.svg Pakistan 1
TotalParticipating associations: 78

Teams

The following teams will participate in the tournament: [12]

Participants
TeamQualifying method
Flag of India.svg Gokulam Kerala FC 2025–26 Indian Super League champions
Flag of India.svg East Bengal FC 2025–26 Indian Super League runners-up
Flag of Bangladesh.svg Bashundhara Kings 2025–26 Bangladesh Premier League champions
Flag of Bhutan.svg Transport United 2025 Bhutan Premier League champions
Flag of Maldives.svg Club Eagles 2025 Dhivehi Premier League champions
Flag of Nepal.svg Church Boys United 2025–26 Martyr's Memorial A-Division League champions
Flag of Pakistan.svg Karachi City 2025–26 Pakistan Premier League champions
Flag of Sri Lanka.svg Defenders 2025–26 Sri Lanka Super League champions

Bracket

The matches will be played in home and away knockout format. [13]

Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
               
1  
8  
 
 
5  
4  
 
 
3  
6  
 
 
7  
2  

Quarter-finals

Team 1 Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg

Semi-finals

Team 1 Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg

Final

Team 1 Agg. Tooltip Aggregate scoreTeam 21st leg2nd leg

See also

References

  1. ↑ "SAFF Club Championship to comprise two teams from India". Archived from the original on 21 December 2023. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  2. ↑ "SAFF executive committee announce inaugural SAFF club championship". 8 January 2025.
  3. ↑ "SAFF announces start of club championship from next year". www.dawn.com. 6 May 2023. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  4. ↑ "First-ever SAFF Club C'ship likely next year". www.newagebd.net. 6 May 2023. Archived from the original on 6 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  5. ↑ "SAFF Club C'ship from next year". www.thedailystar.net. 6 May 2023. Archived from the original on 6 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  6. ↑ "সাফ ক্লাব চ্যাম্পিয়নশিপ হতে পারে আগামী বছর থেকে". www.prothomalo.com (in Bengali). 6 May 2023. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
  7. ↑ https://www.newagebd.net/post/others/254845/saff-2025-to-be-held-on-home-and-away-format
  8. ↑ "SAFF mulls home and away system for its inaugural club championship". www.news9live.com. 17 May 2023. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  9. ↑ "SAFF announces start of club championship from next year". www.dawn.com. 7 May 2023. Archived from the original on 24 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  10. ↑ "SAFF Club Championship to comprise two teams from India". Khel Now. Archived from the original on 21 December 2023. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
  11. ↑ "Two spots for India in the inaugural SAFF Club Championship". thebridge.in. 7 December 2023. Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  12. ↑ Lakhani, Faizan. "Pakistani club to participate in SAFF's inaugural club championship". Geo Super. Archived from the original on 28 November 2023. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  13. ↑ "@MarcusMargulhao: SAFF Club Championship will have eight teams, including two from India, the highest-ranked member association". X (formerly Twitter). Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
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