AFC confirms qualifying pots and format for U-17 Asian Cup 2027; India drawn in Pot 1

The Asian Football Confederation announced on 5 August 2026 the pots and format for the AFC U-17 Asian Cup 2027 qualifying competition, with India placed in Pot 1 ahead of the draw.

Of the 47 AFC member associations, 44 entered the competition; North Korea were disqualified and Nepal and Timor-Leste did not take part. Eight teams that qualified for the 2026 FIFA U-17 World Cup, plus hosts Uzbekistan, have already been granted places in the final tournament, which is tentatively scheduled in Uzbekistan from 12 to 29 May 2027.

The AFC has divided the remaining 35 teams into five pots of seven teams each. Those 35 will be drawn into seven groups of five, with the matches in each group to be played at a centralised host venue chosen from the five teams in the group.

Only the winners of each qualifying group will advance to the final tournament, providing seven places and bringing the total number of teams to 16; there is no qualification route for second-placed teams. The 16 finalists will then be organised into four groups of four for the finals in Uzbekistan.

Seven hosts for the qualifying stage have been allocated across the first three pots, with Pot 1 and Pot 2 each containing three host teams and Pot 3 containing one host nation. Five of the seven teams that appeared in the previous edition but did not qualify for the FIFA U-17 World Cup have been placed in Pot 1, while Myanmar has been placed in Pot 2; North Korea remain disqualified.

Regional allocations include Bangladesh in Pot 2, Pakistan in Pot 4 alongside Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Maldives in Pot 5, and Afghanistan in Pot 3. India’s U-17 side is in Pot 1 alongside host nations Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Oman and three other nations.

The qualifying campaign is expected to take place from 8 to 20 November, leaving less than three months to prepare; the article states the All India Football Federation must appoint a new head coach as soon as possible, noting there are no updates regarding the future of Bibiano Fernandes despite his impressive performances. The draw for the qualifiers is expected to be held on 27 August 2026, after which the seven qualifying groups will be finalised for the November stage that will determine the seven group winners joining the already-qualified teams in Uzbekistan in May 2027.