India's record in SAFF Championship Finals
The Blue Tigers have reached the SAFF Championship 2026 Finals
India have qualified for the SAFF Championship finals for the 14th time, after they beat Bhutan in the Semi-Finals of the 2026 edition of the tournament.
India are all set to play against Pakistan in the Finals of the SAFF Championship 2026 on 17th November at the National Stadium in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The match scheduled to start at 07:30 PM IST.
As the Blue Tigers have qualified for a historic 14th time in the SAFF Championship final, the question must be asked, ‘how well does India fare in the finals of the tournament?’. Well to answer that question we take a look at the record of the Blue Tigers in the SAFF Championship Finals.
India’s record in the Finals of the tournament will be divided into decades, seeing how the SAFF Championship was first started all the way back in 1993, and has been conducted on either a 2 year cycle or a 3 year cycle.
1990 – 2000
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In 1993, the tournament used to be known as the SAARC Gold Cup. The inaugural tournament was hosted by Pakistan in Lahore. The tournament had 4 participants, India, Pakistan, Nepal & Sri Lanka.
The 1993 SAARC Gold Cup was played in a single round robin format with no knock-out rounds. India kicked the tournament off with a 2-1 win against Sri Lanka and a 1-0 win against Nepal. The Blue Tigers then went onto draw against hosts Pakistan, but their two victories were enough to crown them champions.
In 1995, there were supposed to be a total of 6 participants, until Maldives pulled out at the last minute. The 6 teams were divided into 2 groups of 3, who would play in a single round robin, with the top two teams qualifying for the Semi-Finals.
Sri Lanka won the tournament by defeating defending champions India, as Sarath Wellalage scored in extra added time.
In 1997, the SAARC Gold Cup was renamed to the SAFF Gold Cup. Similar to the 1995 format, 6 teams were divided into 2 groups of 3 teams each, with the top 2 of each group qualifying for the semi-finals.
India were put in a group with Maldives & Bangladesh. While they drew against Maldives, India won against Bangladesh and played the semi-finals against Pakistan, winning due to a brace from I.M. Vijayan. The Blue Tigers won the finals after defeating Maldives 5-1.
In 1999, India hosted the 1999 Coca-cola SAFF Gold Cup. The Blue Tigers found themselves in a group with Bangladesh & Pakistan. While they managed to beat Pakistan 2-0, their drew against Bangladesh meant they placed 2nd in the group as Bangladesh had a superior goal difference.
India beat Maldives in the Semi-Finals and then played against Bangladesh in the final. The Blue Tigers successfully defended their title as they beat Bangladesh 2-0 courtesy of goals from Bruno Coutinho & Bhaichung Bhutia.
2000’s – 2010
The first SAFF Gold Cup of the 2000’s was hosted by Bangladesh in 2003. The 2003 SAFF Gold Cup was the first time that there were a total of 8 participants, but the format of the tournament remained unchanged with a single round robin format for the group stages and top 2 teams qualifying for the knock-outs.
The Blue Tigers had a bad tournament relative to their previous ones considering they lost in the group stage to Pakistan and only made it through to the Semi-finals on Goal Difference. Despite their luck with goal difference, they ended up losing 2-1 to Bangladesh after Motiur Munna scored in extra added time.
The Blue Tigers would later exact their revenge on Pakistan by defeating them 2-1 in the 3rd place match. The 2003 edition still remains to be the only edition when India were unable to make the finals of the tournament.
In 2005, the SAFF Gold Cup was renamed as the SAFF Championship. There were again 8 total participants, with India drawn into a group with Bhutan, Nepal & Bangladesh. The Blue Tigers won against the first two, but drew their game 1-1 to Bangladesh. They then won against Maldives in the Semi-finals.
In the finals they faced off against Bangladesh. The Blue Tigers won the match with now India U-17 coach Mehrajuddin Wadoo scoring along with Bhaichung Bhutia.
In 2008, India managed to win all of their Group Stage games, as they defeated Pakistan, Nepal & Maldives, to qualify for the Semi-Finals, where they met Bhutan. After beating the Dragon Boys via a goal in extra time, India met Maldives again in the finals this time.
When entering the finals, the Blue Tigers were deemed favourites, having won the tournament 4 times. Despite the odds, Maldives managed to beat India 1-0, after Mukhthar Nassar scored for Maldives in the 87th minute of the game.
In 2009, India withdrew as hosts, as the hosting rights went to Bangladesh. The Blue Tigers sent their U-23 team to play in the tournament instead of their main team. The U-23 team lost one of their group stage games against Maldives, but still managed to qualify for the semi-finals.
The U-23 team went onto win 1-0 against Bangladesh in the semi-finals. They then faced Maldives again in the finals, where the Blue Colts beat Maldives 3-5 on penalties.
2010’s – 2020
In 2011, the SAFF Championship returned to India, with the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi as its new hosting ground. India beat Bhutan & Sri Lanka, while drawing against Afghanistan. The Blue Tigers then went onto beat Maldives 3-1 in the semi-finals, with Sunil Chhetri scoring a brace.
They then faced off against Afghanistan in the final of the 2011 SAFF Championship, where the Blue Tigers beat them by a score line of 4-0.
In 2013, the SAFF Championship was hosted by Nepal. India were drawn in a group with Nepal, Bangladesh & Pakistan. The Blue Tigers won their first match against Pakistan, then drew against Bangladesh, only to fall short in their last group game against Nepal.
They then faced off against Maldives in the semi-finals of the tournament, where Arnab Mondal’s goal helped the Blue Tigers in defeating Maldives 1-0. India then lost 2-0 to Afgfanistan in the finals of the tournament.
In 2015, India hosted the SAFF Championship in Kerala. Pakistan decided to withdraw from the tournament, leaving the tournament to continue with just 7 teams. India were placed in a 3 team group, where they beat both Sri Lanka & Nepal.
The Blue Tigers next barely scraped a win against Maldives in the semi-finals with a score line of 3-2. They then defeated Afghanistan in the finals, with Sunil Chhetri scoring in extra added time.
In 2018, the SAFF Championship had only 7 participants, as Afghanistan left the SAFF to join then newly formed CAFA. The tournament was hosted by Bangladesh, and India were placed in a 3 team group, where they managed to beat both Maldives & Sri Lanka.
In the semi-finals, the Blue Tigers managed to beat Pakistan 3-1, with Manvir Singh scoring a brace and Sumeet Passi scoring their 3rd goal. In the finals India would succumb to a 2-1 loss against Maldives.
2020’s – 2023
There have been only 2 SAFF Championships in this decade prior to the 2026 edition. In 2021, the tournament was hosted by Maldives. Due to Pakistan’s suspension & Bhutan’s withdrawal, the tournament was played in a single round robin with all 5 teams placed in a group and the top 2 teams playing the finals.
India drew against Bangladesh & Sri Lanka, but managed to beat Nepal and Maldives in the group stages, advancing them to the finals as Group winners alongside Nepal who finished 2nd. The Blue Tigers went on to defeat Nepal 3-0 in the finals, courtesy of goals from Sunil Chhetri, Suresh Wangjam & Sahal Abdul Samad.
The 2023 SAFF Championships were hosted by India at the Sree Kanteerava in Bengaluru. Lebannon & Kuwait were invited as guest teams to participate in the tournament. The Blue Tigers were drawn in a group with Kuwait, Nepal & Pakistan.
While they managed to beat Nepal & Pakistan, the Blue Tigers drew against Kuwait. In the semi-finals of the tournament, the Blue Tigers faced the other guest team, Lebannon, who they managed to beat 4-2 in a penalty shootout after a goal less draw at the end of extra added time.
In the final India suffered a similar fate, as they drew 1-1 against Kuwait after the end of extra added time. The Blue Tigers defeated Kuwait 4-5 on penalties during the finals, despite Udanta Singh missing his penalty.
India’s record in SAFF Championship finals ahead of 2026 final
Finals reached: 13
Finals won by India: 9
Runner-up: 4
When will SAFF Championship 2026 final take place?
The SAFF Championship 2026 final between India and Pakistan will take place on Tuesday,17th November at the National Stadium in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
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