A test for Sri Lanka men and women teams at inaugural SAFF Futsal 2026
Sri Lanka will bank on ambitious talents as Football Sri Lanka (FSL) officially released the names of the national Men’s and Women’s squads for the upcoming inaugural SAFF Futsal Championship 2026, taking place in Bangkok, Thailand. The dual competition, staged for the very first time by the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) with the intention of popularising futsal among countries across the region, will take place at the Nonthaburi Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand from January 12 to 26.
Both the Sri Lanka Men’s and Women’s teams will come under the wings of Head Coach Ahmed Al Mannai with Mohamed Aman leading the men and Stephanie Dias taking the honour of captaining the women’s side.
“It’s a new experience for our players and Sri Lanka as well as other nations and their players of the South Asian region. In addition to the competitions, the championship will accompany capacity building courses for coaches and referees with the aim of strengthening the foundation of futsal in the region,” FSL President Jaswar Umar stated.
The first among two competitions will be SAFF Women’s Futsal Championship, which has been scheduled to be held between January 12 and 25. The SAFF Men’s Futsal Championship will be held from January 14 to 26, as both Sri Lanka men and women are set to take on regional rivals Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal and Pakistan. Both teams will play six matches each, as the inaugural regional futsal competition is played outside of a South Asian country.
According to the SAFF Secretariat, Thailand was selected as the official venue for its infrastructure, accessibility, and the limited futsal experience among its member nations. In addition complications between India and Pakistan, and the latest between India and Bangladesh could also come in as other potential factors in Bangkok hosting the competitions.
Sri Lanka men will face Bhutan on January 14, followed by Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh a day apart, with an off day on January 22. They will take on India on January 24 ahead of their final outing against Maldives two days later.
The women’s side will open their campaign a day prior, on January 13 against Nepal, followed by the game against Pakistan on January 15. After a rest day on January 17, the lasses will take back the field on January 19 against Bhutan, followed by Bangladesh, Maldives and India a day apart until January 25.
In both competitions, the team with the highest points will be crowned as the inaugural SAFF Futsal 2026 champions. The Sri Lanka men’s and women’s futsal teams accompanied by officials, will leave the island for Bangkok today.
| Squads for SAFF Futsal Championship 2026 | |
Fixtures: vs Bhutan on January 14, vs Nepal on January 16, vs Pakistan on January 18, vs Bangladesh on January 20, vs India on January 24, vs Maldives on January 26
Fixtures: vs Nepal on January 13, vs Pakistan on January 15, vs Bhutan on January 19, vs Bangladesh on January 21, vs Maldives on January 23, vs India on January 25 |