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The Indian men’s football team also known as the Blue Tigers will compete in the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup 2025, which is set to commence from August 29th. India sealed their spot in the tournament because of Malaysia’s withdrawal from the tournament due to logistical issues and player unavailability.
This will mark the first major tournament for the Indian national team under their new Head Coach Khalid Jamil. The Indian head coach has announced his group of Tigers on the hunt for the CAFA Nations Cup. India will look to excel in their performance in this tournament gearing up for the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers. India are placed in the group ‘B’ and will be facing Tajikistan on August 29, followed by a match against Iran on September 1 and Afghanistan on September 4. All the group-stage matches of the Blue Tigers are set to be held at the Hisor Central Stadium in Dushanbe.
Some players may not be in the squad right now because I want to try a few other less-tested ones: Khalid Jamil
Speaking about the squad selection for the CAFA Nations Cup 2025, the Head Coach of the Indian national team, Khalid Jamil stated, “My doors are always open to every player. The CAFA Nations Cup will be an excellent opportunity for us to test our players against quality teams. Some players may not be in the squad right now because I want to try a few other less-tested ones, but rest assured, we will bring our best available squad for the Asian Cup qualifiers."
The other teams which will be participating in the tournament are Oman, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan who will be competing against each other in the group ‘A’. Oman were the inaugural champions of the tournament in 2023, it will be interesting to see who takes the title in the second edition. This tournament will be very important for the Indian national team as they gear up for the Asian Cup Qualifiers 2027 against Singapore later this year.
