Seven South Asian nations are ready to make history in women's futsal at the SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026 in Thailand.
A press conference was held ahead of the SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026, the South Asian women's futsal championship, featuring seven competing countries: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. The tournament will take place from 13 to 26 January 2026 at the Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium Gymnasium and the Huamark Indoor Stadium.
Fatemeh Sharif, head coach of Pakistan's national team, said, “Yes, this tournament is essential and very important for the South Asian countries to develop futsal. For our country, this is truly our first international competition.”
“We have tried our best to prepare the team, but we only had about three weeks. Pakistan does not yet have an official national futsal team. We just started the player selection process, and most players are experienced footballers, which makes it challenging for us.”
“But we are learning everything from them—techniques, tactics, fitness preparation, and mental conditioning.”
“Now we are here to represent Pakistan and demonstrate our potential.”
“Of course, we need more time to prepare because we faced several issues, including visa applications, the local coach’s health problems, and scouting players from four cities in Pakistan, including the training center in Lahore.”
“Ultimately, we selected the best players from all who attended camp. Currently, 14 players have traveled here, and all are Pakistan's finest at this time.”
Joshua Stanwas, head coach of India’s national team, shared about their preparation, saying the training covered all aspects of the game despite limited information about opponents.
“Our team has been preparing for over a month at a camp in Bangalore. We conducted player selection and continuous training. Although we have limited data on our rivals, we have focused on all elements of the game—offense, defense, and overall futsal components. After the first match, we will better understand the other teams.”
The Indian coach also commented on the South Asian competition landscape: “All teams come from football-based countries with regional competition experience. Despite our team’s average age of about 21, we are ready to fight for the top goal.”
“Our team is young, but we are here to compete and aim to win the championship. We will do our best, and I hope this tournament helps South Asian countries grow and compete more in futsal and football in the future.”
Passang Shering, head coach of Bhutan’s national team, said their preparation faced many constraints because most players are students balancing studies and exams.
“We didn’t have much time to prepare since most players are students who had to take exams late last year. So, we only had about one month of real practice, but I believe our players worked hard and hope they are ready to face every team.”
The Bhutanese coach added that although time was limited, the players’ long experience playing football together helped the team prepare well in a short period. He emphasized that weather is not an obstacle since futsal is played indoors.
“Our players have played football together for a long time, which helped us adapt quickly. Since futsal is an indoor sport, weather conditions are not an issue.”
Shering highlighted the tournament’s significance for Bhutan’s futsal scene, noting it is a championship event the country has rarely had since around 2005.
“Futsal is still very new to Bhutan, especially in South Asia. We have hardly had tournaments like this domestically. It has been almost 20 years since we last had a true championship event, so this tournament means a lot to us.”
Ahmad Banai, head coach of Sri Lanka’s national team, said they began preparations around the New Year, focusing primarily on gaining experience in this tournament.
Banai stated, “Our coaching staff has worked very well. This national team started its work and training around the New Year. Certainly, strong teams like Thailand, Indonesia, and Japan in the region set high standards.”
“During about a month of preparation, we consistently reminded players that ‘experience’ is the most important thing. So, we are here to gain experience from international games.”
Saeed, an Iranian head coach leading Bangladesh’s team, viewed this first South Asian women’s futsal tournament as a significant step for the region and an opportunity for Bangladesh to seriously develop women’s futsal.
“Our country still lacks clear futsal training facilities like some others, but I hope this will be a good starting point.”
He also pointed out that population base is another key factor that can support future development if planned and built on correctly.
Bikram Maharjan, head coach of Nepal’s women’s futsal team, expressed, “Our team has prepared well. We have been in training camp for about a month, and everyone is very excited to take the field this afternoon.”
“The team atmosphere is full of optimism, and all coaches continuously encourage and motivate the players.”
“Our goal is to win and aim for the gold medal or the championship of this tournament.”
Fans can attend the matches free of charge and watch live broadcasts on Youtube: Sportzworkz. The competition uses a round-robin format, ranking teams by points, with the highest scoring team crowned champion.
The match schedule is as follows:
13 January 2026
Women | SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Maldives vs India ⏰ 14:00
Pakistan vs Bhutan ⏰ 16:30
Sri Lanka vs Nepal ⏰ 19:00
14 January 2026
Men | SAFF Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Sri Lanka vs Bhutan ⏰ 14:00
India vs Bangladesh ⏰ 16:30
Pakistan vs Maldives ⏰ 19:00
15 January 2026
Women | SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026
Venue: Huamark Indoor Stadium
Bangladesh vs India ⏰ 14:00
Maldives vs Nepal ⏰ 16:30
Pakistan vs Sri Lanka ⏰ 19:00
16 January 2026
Men | SAFF Futsal Championship 2026
Venue: Huamark Indoor Stadium
Sri Lanka vs Nepal ⏰ 14:00
Pakistan vs Bhutan ⏰ 16:30
Maldives vs Bangladesh ⏰ 19:00
17 January 2026
Women | SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Bangladesh vs Bhutan ⏰ 14:00
India vs Nepal ⏰ 16:30
Maldives vs Pakistan ⏰ 19:00
18 January 2026
Men | SAFF Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
India vs Nepal ⏰ 14:00
Pakistan vs Sri Lanka ⏰ 16:30
Bangladesh vs Bhutan ⏰ 19:00
19 January 2026
Women | SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Bangladesh vs Nepal ⏰ 14:00
Bhutan vs Sri Lanka ⏰ 16:30
India vs Pakistan ⏰ 19:00
20 January 2026
Men | SAFF Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Pakistan vs Nepal ⏰ 14:00
Maldives vs India ⏰ 16:30
Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka ⏰ 19:00
21 January 2026
Women | SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka ⏰ 14:00
Nepal vs Pakistan ⏰ 16:30
Bhutan vs Maldives ⏰ 19:00
22 January 2026
Men | SAFF Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Maldives vs Nepal ⏰ 14:00
Bangladesh vs Pakistan ⏰ 16:30
Bhutan vs India ⏰ 19:00
23 January 2026
Women | SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Bangladesh vs Pakistan ⏰ 14:00
Sri Lanka vs Maldives ⏰ 16:30
Bhutan vs India ⏰ 19:00
24 January 2026
Men | SAFF Futsal Championship 2026
Gymnasium, Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization Central Stadium
Bangladesh vs Nepal ⏰ 14:00
Bhutan vs Maldives ⏰ 16:30
Sri Lanka vs India ⏰ 19:00
25 January 2026
Women | SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship 2026
Venue: Huamark Indoor Stadium
Bangladesh vs Maldives ⏰ 14:00
Sri Lanka vs India ⏰ 16:30
Nepal vs Bhutan ⏰ 19:00
26 January 2026
Men | SAFF Futsal Championship 2026
Venue: Huamark Indoor Stadium
Bhutan vs Nepal ⏰ 14:00
Sri Lanka vs Maldives ⏰ 16:30
India vs Pakistan ⏰ 19:00