Defending champions India drawn with Pakistan and Maldives in SAFF Championship 2026

Defending champions India have been drawn into a group alongside Pakistan and the Maldives for the 2026 SAFF Championship. The grouping sets India's immediate opponents for the competition's group stage.

India enter the 2026 SAFF Championship as the reigning titleholders, and the recent draw placed them in a pool with Pakistan and the Maldives. The announcement identifies the three nations who will contest that section of the tournament and clarifies India's first set of rivals in the competition. No further match details were included with the draw information provided in the initial report.

The composition of India’s group means the national team will face Pakistan and the Maldives in the group phase of the SAFF Championship. Those fixtures will determine which sides advance from the pool, with India carrying the distinction of being the defending champions into each match. The draw result finalizes the immediate competitive landscape for India at the tournament.

For Pakistan and the Maldives, being placed with the title-holders sets the timetable of opponents they must negotiate in their opening round. Each nation in the group will play the others as part of the group-stage schedule established by the draw. The outcomes of those matches will shape which teams move beyond the pool stage.

The grouping resolves the question of India's initial adversaries in the 2026 edition and frames the early competitive narrative of the tournament. Supporters and officials now know the three-team composition of India’s group and can anticipate those matchups as the SAFF Championship approaches.

The draw confirms India will meet Pakistan and the Maldives in the group stage, defining the immediate path the defending champions must navigate. Further details on fixture dates, venues and match times will determine the precise schedule for those encounters.