India Wins the SAFF Championship 2023

The South Asian Football Federation Championship (SAFF) is an international football championship which is organized every two years. Seven countries participate in the championship, namely, Sri Lanka, Pakistan Nepal, India, Maldives, Bangladesh and Bhutan. Until 2015, Afghanistan was also a part of the association. The SAFF Championship was established in 1993, under the former name of the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation (SAARC) Gold Cup. 

This year the SAFF Championship 2023 was held at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bangalore from June 21 to July 4. This was the 14th edition of the tournament. Sri Lanka did not participate in the tournament as the nation was banned by FIFA in January 2023. To make up for the lacking team, Kuwait and Lebanon were sent invites although they are not a part of the SAFF Association. With the addition of two new teams, a total of 8 countries played at the SAFF Championship 2023. 

After a series of exciting matches, India and Kuwait made it to the finals and played against each other on July 4, 2023. The match tied at 1-1, even after the extra time. This led to thrilling rounds of penalty shootouts and ultimately India’s win. India won 5-4 by scoring the winning goal against Kuwait in the penalty shootout. This is the 9th time that the Indian men’s football team won the SAFF Championship.