India maintains unbeaten record to win the Men’s SAFF U17 Championship

The undefeated Indian football team lifted the 2024 Men’s SAFF U17 Championship by defeating Bangaldesh 2-0 in the final. The final was played at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu, Bhutan, on 30 September 2024.  The Indian boy's football team, also famously known as Blue Colts, remained undefeated throughout the tournament.

India and Bangladesh have met five times in the SAFF men’s age group tournament finals. India has won four times - U18 in 2019, U20 in 2022, U16 in 2023 and U17 in 2024. Bangladesh has won once in U16 in 2015.

The 2024 Men’s SAFF U17 Championship was held in Thimphu, Bhutan, from 22-30 September 2024.

Unbeaten India in the SAFF U17 Championships

Seven teams -India, Bangladesh, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Pakistan participated in the 2024 Men’s SAAF U17 Championships.  

India, Bangladesh, and the Maldives were in Group A, and Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bhutan were in Group B.

India defeated Bangladesh 1-0 and Maldives 3-0. In the semi-final, India defeated Nepal by 4-2. Bangladesh defeated Pakistan in the penalty shoot 8-7 in the other semi-final to qualify for the finals.

In the final, Mohammed Kaif scored the opening goal for India, and Mohammed Arbash scored the second goal in the 95th minute.

Ngamgouhou Mate captained the Indian team.

Awards Winners  

• Player of the Tournament: Mohammed Arbash of India.
• Goalkeeper of the Tournament: Aheibam Suraj Singh.

 Also read: Bangladesh wins maiden  SAFF U-20 Championship Football Tournament.

About SAFF (South Asian Football Federation)

The South Asian Football Federation is a regional football association of South Asian countries. 

It was founded in 1997 by Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bhutan later joined the Federation.

SAFF organises both seniors and juniors tournaments for men and women.

The tournament organised for seniors (men/women) is called the SAAF Championships.

The junior event for men is organised for the various age groups: U-16, U-17, U-19, and U-20. 

The junior events for women are organised in U-15, U-16, U-17, U-18, and U-20 categories.

Headquarters: Dhaka, Bangladesh 

President of SAFF: Kazi Md. Salahuddin of Bangladesh