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India's Futsal Squads Announced for Historic SAFF Championships in Thailand

The All India Football Federation has announced the 14-player squads for both the men's and women's teams set to compete in the inaugural SAFF Futsal Championships in Thailand this January. The men's team, coached by Iranian Reza Kordi, and the women's team, led by Indian Joshuah Vaz, completed a joint month-long training camp in Bengaluru before departing. Both tournaments will feature all seven SAFF nations in a single round-robin format, with India's men facing Bangladesh first and the women opening against the Maldives. Several players from both squads have prior experience from recent AFC Futsal Asian Cup qualifying campaigns.

Key Points: India's SAFF Futsal Championship 2026 Squads Announced

  • Squads of 14 players each announced
  • First-ever SAFF futsal tournaments
  • Men's team coached by Reza Kordi
  • Women's team led by Joshuah Vaz
3 min read

Indian squads for SAFF men's and women's Futsal Championships announced

Indian men's and women's futsal squads revealed for the inaugural SAFF Futsal Championships in Thailand. Fixtures, player lists, and coaches inside.

"Both tournaments will take place in parallel in Nonthaburi, Thailand, later this month. - Official Announcement"

New Delhi, Jan 7

India's squads for the SAFF Futsal Championship 2026 and the SAFF Women's Futsal Championship 2026 have been announced. Both tournaments will take place in parallel in Nonthaburi, Thailand, later this month.

The Futsal Tigers and the Futsal Tigresses, each with 14 players, arrived in Bangkok on Wednesday.

The men's team, led by Iranian Reza Kordi, and the women's team, led by Indian Joshuah Vaz, held a month-long training camp together in Bengaluru before travelling to Thailand for the first-ever SAFF futsal tournaments.

The SAFF Futsal Championship will be held from January 14 to 26, while the SAFF Women's Futsal Championship will take place from January 13 to 25. Both competitions will be held in a single round-robin format, and the team with the most points will be crowned champions. All seven SAFF member associations will participate in both events.

In the women's tournament, India will face Maldives (January 13), Bangladesh (January 15), Nepal (January 17), Pakistan (January 19), Bhutan (January 23) and Sri Lanka (January 25). In the men's event, India will face Bangladesh (January 14), Nepal (January 18), Maldives (January 20), Bhutan (January 22), Sri Lanka (January 24) and Pakistan (January 26).

Eight of the 14 players in the men's team (Mollah, Silva, Lalsangkima, Adhikari, Roluahpuia, Mali, D'souza and Lalrawngbawla) were part of the AFC Futsal Asian Cup Qualifiers last year, where India beat Mongolia 3-0 for their first-ever international futsal win. In the women's squad, seven players participated in the AFC Women's Futsal Asian Cup 2025 Qualifiers (Tanvi, Achom, Arya, Radhika, Pooja, Ritika and Khushbu).

India's squad for the SAFF Futsal Championship 2026:

Goalkeepers: Aleef Rahman Mollah, Ozen Vivian Silva.

Fixo: Lalsangkima, Lalsawmpuia.

Ala: Anmol Adhikari, K Roluahpuia, Lalrinzuala H, Nikhil Mali, Seaon D'souza, Vincent Laltluangzela.

Pivot: Hafis AM, Jonathan Lalrawngbawla, Palash Barber, Tijo Job.

Head coach: Reza Kordi

India's squad for the SAFF Women's Futsal Championship 2026:

Goalkeepers: Aiswarya Arumugam, Tanvi Mavani.

Fixo: Achom Degio, Arya More, Jigmet Chunzen, Radhika Patel.

Ala: Aarushi Santhosh, Diti Kanungo, Nishka Parkash, Pooja Gupta, Ritika Singh, Sonali Mondal.

Pivot: Khushbu Saroj, Mithila Ramani.

Head coach: Joshuah Vaz

Indian men's team's fixtures in the SAFF Futsal Championship 2026:

15:30 IST, January 14: India vs Bangladesh

12:30 IST, January 18: India vs Nepal

15:30 IST, January 20: Maldives vs India

18:30 IST, January 22: Bhutan vs India

18:30 IST, January 24: Sri Lanka vs India

18:30 IST, January 26: India vs Pakistan

Indian men's team's fixtures in the SAFF Futsal Championship 2026:

12:30 IST, January 13: Maldives vs India

12:30 IST, January 15: Bangladesh vs India

15:30 IST, January 17: India vs Nepal

18:30 IST, January 19: India vs Pakistan

18:30 IST, January 23: Bhutan vs India

15:30 IST, January 25: Sri Lanka vs India

Venue: Nonthaburi Stadium, Nonthaburi, Thailand.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
So proud of our Futsal Tigresses! The women's team has a great mix of youth and experience. Special shoutout to Coach Joshuah Vaz. Let's dominate the SAFF region! The match against Pakistan on Jan 19th will be crucial.
A
Aman W
The month-long camp in Bengaluru should help with coordination. But I have a respectful criticism: why is the men's head coach still Iranian? We have talented Indian coaches. Shouldn't we be developing our own technical leadership for the long term?
S
Sarah B
Interesting to see the diverse names in the squad – from the Northeast, Goa, and across India. Truly a national team. Hope the broadcast is easily accessible. Will it be on DD Sports or streaming?
V
Vikram M
The fixtures are perfectly timed for evening viewing in India. Marking my calendar for the India vs Pakistan matches in both categories. That's going to be pure fire! Best of luck to our teams.
K
Kavya N
This is a fantastic platform for our players. Futsal is fast and technical – great for skill development. Hope this leads to more investment in indoor facilities across the country. Jai Hind!

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