Indian football calendar, Men: AFC Asian Cup, Merdeka Cup, Indian Super League lined up in 2023-24 schedule

The Indian men’s national football team has broken into the top 100 of the FIFA rankings after five years and is enjoying a purple patch under head coach Igor Stimac. The 2022-23 season was the first time all the Indian Super League clubs played a full domestic season, with Bengaluru FC winning the Durand Cup, Mohun Bagan Super Giant winning the ISL title and Odisha FC clinching the Super Cup. This season, however, the All India Football Federation decided to do away with the Super Cup and re-introduced the Federation Cup after six years. With a packed schedule ahead, the Indian football calendar for the men’s team ahead of the 2023-24 season is as follows: International football: SAFF U-16 Championship September 1: Bangladesh vs India - Group A September 5: India vs Nepal - Group A September 7: Semi-final September 10: Final AFC U-23 Asian Cup 2024 Qualifiers September 6 – India vs Maldives September 9 – China vs India September 12 – UAE vs India King’s Cup September 7: Iraq vs India - Semifinal September 10: India vs TBD - Third-place Play-off or Final Asian Games September 19: China vs India - September 21: India vs Bangladesh September 24: Myanmar vs India September 27 or 28: Men’s Round of 16 October 1: Men’s Quarter-final October 4: Men’s Semi-final October 7: Men’s Gold/Bronze medal match Merdeka Cup October 13 – Malaysia vs India – 6:30 pm October 17 – Final/Third-place match The India men’s football team, having won the SAFF Championship 2023, will hope to continue its momentum in the 2023-24 cycle. | Photo Credit: Murali Kumar K/The Hindu SAFF U-19 Championship September 21: Bangladesh vs India - Group B September 25: India vs Bhutan - Group B September 27: Semi-final September 30: Final FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers November 21 – India vs Qatar March 26 – Afghanistan/Mongolia June 6 – India vs Kuwait AFC Asian Cup January 13 – India vs Australia January 18 – India vs Uzbekistan January 23 – Syria vs India Round of 16 – January 28/30 Quarterfinal – February 2/3 Semifinal – February 6/7 Final – February 10 National Football Santosh Trophy: December 2023-March 2024 December 2023-March 2024 U-20 Championship: January-February 2024 Club Football: Durand Cup August 3-September 3 AFC Cup qualifying spots 2nd round: August 16 – 7:00 pm – Mohun Bagan vs Machhindra/Paro Play-off round: August 22 – Winner of 2nd round vs Club Abahani/Club Eagles AFC Champions League September 18, 2023: Mumbai City FC vs Nassaji Mazandaran - Pune, India - 7:30 pm IST October 3, 2023: Navbahor Namangan vs Mumbai City FC - Namangan, Uzbekistan - 7:30 pm IST October 23, 2023: Al Hilal SFC vs Mumbai City FC - Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - 11:30 pm IST November 6, 2023: Mumbai City FC vs Al Hilal SFC - Pune, India - 7:30 pm IST November 28, 2023: Nassaji Mazandaran vs Mumbai City FC - Tehran, Iran - 9:30 pm December 4, 2023: Mumbai City FC vs Navbahor Namangan - Pune, India - 9:30 pm IST AFC Cup September 19, 2023: Odisha FC vs Mohun Bagan Super Giant - 7:30 pm IST - Bhubaneswar, India October 2, 2023: Bashundhara Kings vs Odisha FC - 5:30 pm IST - Dhaka, Bangladesh October 24, 2023: Odisha FC vs Maziya S&RC - 7:30 pm IST - Bhubaneswar, India November 7, 2023: Maziya S&RC vs Odisha FC - 9:30 pm - Male, Maldives November 27, 2023: Mohun Bagan SG vs Odisha FC - 7:30 pm - Kolkata, India December 11, 2023: Odisha FC vs Bashundhara Kings - 7:30 pm - Bhubaneswar, India Indian Super League September 22-April 10 I-League October 2023 - April 2024 Federation Cup April - May 2024 **The tournaments whose exact dates are not given are tentative to change, as per instructions from the apex body/organising committee.