India v Panama: Friendly in Bengaluru on Sept 25 — live on Sony LIV
India will host Panama in an international friendly at the Sree Kateerava Stadium in Bengaluru on 25th September, with kick-off scheduled for 7:30 PM IST; the match will be available to stream on the Sony LIV app and will be broadcast by the Sony Sports Network.
The fixture is the Blue Tigers’ first friendly of the September–October international window and will be India’s first match against a World Cup-playing nation since a 3-0 defeat to Iran in the CAFA Nations Cup 2025. The two countries have never met before. The game forms part of a series of high-profile friendlies for India during this window.
Khalid Jamil’s squad arrive having produced limited positive results this year: their only win came against Hong Kong in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers in March. In May, India lost two Unity Cup matches to Zimbabwe and Jamaica. Their most recent pair of matches were against Tajikistan, a 3-1 defeat followed by a 1-1 draw.
Jamil’s selection for the friendlies omits several veterans, with Sandesh Jhingan, Rahul Bheke, Liston Colaco, Lallianzuala Chhangte and Jeakson Singh all left out of the squad. The coach has chosen a group that gives opportunities to younger players across the roster as the team prepares for the international window.
Panama arrive off their summer World Cup campaign, where they were drawn into Group L with Ghana, England and Croatia, lost all three group matches and finished the tournament without scoring a goal or gaining a point. Head coach Thomas Christiansen has named a 27-man squad that includes six players receiving their first national team call-up and retains 14 players who featured in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Christiansen’s selections are described as part of an effort to kickstart a new Panamanian generation in preparation for the 2030 FIFA World Cup.
Broadcasters for the India v Panama friendly include Sony Sports Ten 2 SD & HD and Sony Aath SD & HD (Bengali), with the livestream exclusive to Sony LIV. Tickets for the match have been promoted online via the link https://t.co/EWNP1YWpEK.
India will face two further World Cup nations later in the same window, meeting five-time World Champions Brazil on 3rd October and two-time World Champions Uruguay on 6th October, both fixtures scheduled for the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata with 7:30 PM IST kick-offs.
