Indian Futsal Team to play two friendlies in Beirut ahead of AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers
The Indian men's Futsal team will play two friendlies against Lebanon in Beirut as part of their preparation for the AFC Futsal Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers, set to begin later this month
Hyderabad: The Indian men’s Futsal team will play two friendly matches against Lebanon in Beirut on September 13 and 15 as part of their preparations for the AFC Futsal Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers, scheduled for later this month.
Led by Iranian Head Coach Reza Kordi, the Futsal Tigers held a 20-day camp in Bengaluru after the conclusion of the AIFF Futsal Club Championship last month. India, ranked 135th in the world, arrived in the Lebanese capital on Friday and will play the first friendly against the 54th-ranked hosts on Saturday at the Al Sadaka Sporting Complex at 21:30 IST.
After the two friendlies, India will travel from Lebanon to Kuwait for the AFC Futsal Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers, where they will face the hosts on September 20, Australia on September 22, and Mongolia on September 24, in Group A. The group winners and the seven best runners-up across all eight groups will qualify for the final tournament in Indonesia next year. This will be the Futsal Tigers’ second attempt to qualify for the Asian Cup after the 2024 qualifiers.
The team:
Goalkeepers: Aleef Rahman Mollah, Ozen Vivian Silva, Vishal Dube
Fixo: Aman Navalkumar Shah, Lalsangkima
Ala: Anmol Adhikari, Bijoy Gusai, K Roluahpuia, Seaon D’souza
Pivot: David Laltlansanga, Fredsan Marshall, Jonathan Lalrawngbawla, Mahip Adhikari, Nikhil Mali
Head Coach: Reza Kordi
Assistant Coach: Hassan Khodabandehloo bin Abolfazl
Goalkeeping Coach: Veerababu Sivaneni
