SAFF Championship
Encyclopedia
The SAFF Championship, also called the South Asian Football Federation Cup (previously South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup), is the main football
competition of the men's national football teams governed by the South Asian Football Federation
. Previous names have included the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup in 1993 and South Asian Gold Cup 95 in 1995. Eight teams compete in the South Asian Football Federation Tournament.
The countries that compete in the tournaments are Afghanistan
, Bangladesh
, Bhutan
, India
, Maldives
, Nepal
, Pakistan
and Sri Lanka
. It is held every two years.
The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship kicked off in Kathmandu in 1997, evolving out of its forerunner, the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Gold Cup.
Since its inception, the biennial competition has developed into South Asia’s premier football tournament, promoting the regional development of the game.
The SAFF Championship, also called the South Asian Football Federation Cup (previously South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup), is the main football
competition of the men's national football teams governed by the South Asian Football Federation
. Previous names have included the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup in 1993 and South Asian Gold Cup 95 in 1995. Eight teams compete in the South Asian Football Federation Tournament.
The countries that compete in the tournaments are Afghanistan
, Bangladesh
, Bhutan
, India
, Maldives
, Nepal
, Pakistan
and Sri Lanka
. It is held every two years.
The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship kicked off in Kathmandu in 1997, evolving out of its forerunner, the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Gold Cup.
Since its inception, the biennial competition has developed into South Asia’s premier football tournament, promoting the regional development of the game.
The SAFF Championship, also called the South Asian Football Federation Cup (previously South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup), is the main football
competition of the men's national football teams governed by the South Asian Football Federation
. Previous names have included the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup in 1993 and South Asian Gold Cup 95 in 1995. Eight teams compete in the South Asian Football Federation Tournament.
The countries that compete in the tournaments are Afghanistan
, Bangladesh
, Bhutan
, India
, Maldives
, Nepal
, Pakistan
and Sri Lanka
. It is held every two years.
The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship kicked off in Kathmandu in 1997, evolving out of its forerunner, the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Gold Cup.
Since its inception, the biennial competition has developed into South Asia’s premier football tournament, promoting the regional development of the game.
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
competition of the men's national football teams governed by the South Asian Football Federation
South Asian Football Federation
South Asian Football Federation , founded in 1997, is an association of the football playing nations in South Asia. Its founding members are Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Bhutan joined the federation in 2000 and Afghanistan in 2005...
. Previous names have included the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup in 1993 and South Asian Gold Cup 95 in 1995. Eight teams compete in the South Asian Football Federation Tournament.
The countries that compete in the tournaments are Afghanistan
Afghanistan national football team
The Afghanistan national football team is the national team of Afghanistan and is controlled by the Afghanistan Football Federation. The national team was founded in 1922 that joined FIFA in 1948 and the AFC in 1954...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh national football team
The Bangladesh national football team is the national team of Bangladesh controlled by the Bangladesh Football Federation. It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation and has yet to qualify for the World Cup finals...
, Bhutan
Bhutan national football team
The Bhutan national football team is the national team of Bhutan and is controlled by the Bhutan Football Federation.- History :While a Bhutanese National football team has existed since the 1970s, it was officially founded in 1983 and joined FIFA in 2000....
, India
India national football team
The Indian national football team is the national football team of India and is governed by the All India Football Federation. It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation. Since 1948, the AIFF has been affiliated with FIFA, the international governing body for football. In 1954, AIFF became...
, Maldives
Maldives national football team
The Maldives national football team is the national team of the Maldives and is controlled by the Football Association of Maldives. A member of the AFC, it qualified for the second stage of Asian qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, where it drew with South Korea at home 0–0.Maldives most significant...
, Nepal
Nepal national football team
The Nepal national football team is the national team of Nepal and is controlled by the All Nepal Football Association. A member of the Asian Football Confederation , the Nepalese football team play their home games at Dasarath Rangasala Stadium located at Tripureswhor in Kathmandu. The All Nepal...
, Pakistan
Pakistan national football team
The Pakistan national football team is controlled by the Pakistan Football Federation and is a member of the Asian Football Confederation . The team has not yet qualified for either the FIFA World Cup or Asian Cup championships. Twice they have finished third in the South Asian Football Federation...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka national football team
The Sri Lanka national football team represents Sri Lanka in association football and is controlled by the Football Federation of Sri Lanka, the governing body for football in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka's home grounds are Sugathadasa Stadium and Kalutara Stadium and their head coach is Jang Jung...
. It is held every two years.
The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship kicked off in Kathmandu in 1997, evolving out of its forerunner, the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Gold Cup.
Since its inception, the biennial competition has developed into South Asia’s premier football tournament, promoting the regional development of the game.
Tournaments
| Year | Host | Final | Third Place Match | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champion | Score | Runner-up | 3rd Place | Score | 4th Place | ||
| 1993 Details South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup 1993 The 1993 South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation Gold Cup was the first South Asian Football Federation Cup, held in Lahore, Pakistan between 16 July 1993 and 23 July 1993. The countries that competed in this tournament are India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Additionally a Pakistan... |
 Pakistan |
n/a(1) | n/a(1) | ||||
| 1995 Details South Asian Gold Cup 1995 The 1995 South Asian Gold Cup was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka between 25 March 1995 and 2 April 1995. Originally 6 teams participated in the competition, but Maldives withdrew from the competition.-Group A:---------Group B:----... |
 Sri Lanka |
1 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 1997 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 1997 The 1997 South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup was held in Kathmandu, Nepal between 4 September 1997 and 13 September 1997.-Group A:---------Group B:---------Semi-finals:-----Third Place Match:-Final:-Champion:... |
 Nepal |
5 - 1 | 1 - 0 | ||||
| 1999 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 1999 The 1999 South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup was held in Goa, India between 22 January 1999 and 1 May 1999. The Nehru Stadium in Margao played host to all matches.-Group A:---------Group B:---------Semi-finals:----... |
 India |
2 - 0 | 2 - 0 | ||||
| 2003 Details |
 Bangladesh |
1 -1 (5 - 3) pens Penalty shootout (football) A penalty shoot-out, referred to as kicks from the penalty mark in the Laws of the Game, is the FIFA official term for a method used in association football to decide which team progresses to the next stage of a tournament following a tied game... |
2 -1 | ||||
| 2005 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 2005 The 2005 South Asian Football Federation Cup was hosted in Karachi, Pakistan from December 7 to December 17.Bangladesh and India played out the final in a repeat of the 1999 final. Just as in the 1999 final, India beat Bangladesh 2-0 with goals from Mehraj Din Wadoo and Baichung Bhutia. Bhutia was... |
Pakistan |
2 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 2008 Details |
 Maldives Sri Lanka |
1 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 2009 Details |
Bangladesh |
(4) | 0 - 0 (3 - 1) pens Penalty shootout (football) A penalty shoot-out, referred to as kicks from the penalty mark in the Laws of the Game, is the FIFA official term for a method used in association football to decide which team progresses to the next stage of a tournament following a tied game... |
n/a(2) | |||
| 2011 Details 2011 South Asian Football Federation Cup The 2011 South Asian Football Federation Cup will be the ninth edition of SAFF Championship to be held in New Delhi, India. It was originally scheduled to take place in Orissa, India in December 2011, but was switched to New Delhi by the Executive Committee of the All India Football Federation on... |
India |
||||||
The SAFF Championship, also called the South Asian Football Federation Cup (previously South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup), is the main football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
competition of the men's national football teams governed by the South Asian Football Federation
South Asian Football Federation
South Asian Football Federation , founded in 1997, is an association of the football playing nations in South Asia. Its founding members are Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Bhutan joined the federation in 2000 and Afghanistan in 2005...
. Previous names have included the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup in 1993 and South Asian Gold Cup 95 in 1995. Eight teams compete in the South Asian Football Federation Tournament.
The countries that compete in the tournaments are Afghanistan
Afghanistan national football team
The Afghanistan national football team is the national team of Afghanistan and is controlled by the Afghanistan Football Federation. The national team was founded in 1922 that joined FIFA in 1948 and the AFC in 1954...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh national football team
The Bangladesh national football team is the national team of Bangladesh controlled by the Bangladesh Football Federation. It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation and has yet to qualify for the World Cup finals...
, Bhutan
Bhutan national football team
The Bhutan national football team is the national team of Bhutan and is controlled by the Bhutan Football Federation.- History :While a Bhutanese National football team has existed since the 1970s, it was officially founded in 1983 and joined FIFA in 2000....
, India
India national football team
The Indian national football team is the national football team of India and is governed by the All India Football Federation. It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation. Since 1948, the AIFF has been affiliated with FIFA, the international governing body for football. In 1954, AIFF became...
, Maldives
Maldives national football team
The Maldives national football team is the national team of the Maldives and is controlled by the Football Association of Maldives. A member of the AFC, it qualified for the second stage of Asian qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, where it drew with South Korea at home 0–0.Maldives most significant...
, Nepal
Nepal national football team
The Nepal national football team is the national team of Nepal and is controlled by the All Nepal Football Association. A member of the Asian Football Confederation , the Nepalese football team play their home games at Dasarath Rangasala Stadium located at Tripureswhor in Kathmandu. The All Nepal...
, Pakistan
Pakistan national football team
The Pakistan national football team is controlled by the Pakistan Football Federation and is a member of the Asian Football Confederation . The team has not yet qualified for either the FIFA World Cup or Asian Cup championships. Twice they have finished third in the South Asian Football Federation...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka national football team
The Sri Lanka national football team represents Sri Lanka in association football and is controlled by the Football Federation of Sri Lanka, the governing body for football in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka's home grounds are Sugathadasa Stadium and Kalutara Stadium and their head coach is Jang Jung...
. It is held every two years.
The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship kicked off in Kathmandu in 1997, evolving out of its forerunner, the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Gold Cup.
Since its inception, the biennial competition has developed into South Asia’s premier football tournament, promoting the regional development of the game.
Tournaments
| Year | Host | Final | Third Place Match | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champion | Score | Runner-up | 3rd Place | Score | 4th Place | ||
| 1993 Details South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup 1993 The 1993 South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation Gold Cup was the first South Asian Football Federation Cup, held in Lahore, Pakistan between 16 July 1993 and 23 July 1993. The countries that competed in this tournament are India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Additionally a Pakistan... |
Pakistan |
n/a(1) | n/a(1) | ||||
| 1995 Details South Asian Gold Cup 1995 The 1995 South Asian Gold Cup was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka between 25 March 1995 and 2 April 1995. Originally 6 teams participated in the competition, but Maldives withdrew from the competition.-Group A:---------Group B:----... |
Sri Lanka |
1 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 1997 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 1997 The 1997 South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup was held in Kathmandu, Nepal between 4 September 1997 and 13 September 1997.-Group A:---------Group B:---------Semi-finals:-----Third Place Match:-Final:-Champion:... |
Nepal |
5 - 1 | 1 - 0 | ||||
| 1999 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 1999 The 1999 South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup was held in Goa, India between 22 January 1999 and 1 May 1999. The Nehru Stadium in Margao played host to all matches.-Group A:---------Group B:---------Semi-finals:----... |
India |
2 - 0 | 2 - 0 | ||||
| 2003 Details |
Bangladesh |
1 -1 (5 - 3) pens Penalty shootout (football) A penalty shoot-out, referred to as kicks from the penalty mark in the Laws of the Game, is the FIFA official term for a method used in association football to decide which team progresses to the next stage of a tournament following a tied game... |
2 -1 | ||||
| 2005 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 2005 The 2005 South Asian Football Federation Cup was hosted in Karachi, Pakistan from December 7 to December 17.Bangladesh and India played out the final in a repeat of the 1999 final. Just as in the 1999 final, India beat Bangladesh 2-0 with goals from Mehraj Din Wadoo and Baichung Bhutia. Bhutia was... |
Pakistan |
2 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 2008 Details |
Maldives Sri Lanka |
1 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 2009 Details |
Bangladesh |
(4) | 0 - 0 (3 - 1) pens Penalty shootout (football) A penalty shoot-out, referred to as kicks from the penalty mark in the Laws of the Game, is the FIFA official term for a method used in association football to decide which team progresses to the next stage of a tournament following a tied game... |
n/a(2) | |||
| 2011 Details 2011 South Asian Football Federation Cup The 2011 South Asian Football Federation Cup will be the ninth edition of SAFF Championship to be held in New Delhi, India. It was originally scheduled to take place in Orissa, India in December 2011, but was switched to New Delhi by the Executive Committee of the All India Football Federation on... |
India |
||||||
The SAFF Championship, also called the South Asian Football Federation Cup (previously South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup), is the main football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
competition of the men's national football teams governed by the South Asian Football Federation
South Asian Football Federation
South Asian Football Federation , founded in 1997, is an association of the football playing nations in South Asia. Its founding members are Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Bhutan joined the federation in 2000 and Afghanistan in 2005...
. Previous names have included the South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup in 1993 and South Asian Gold Cup 95 in 1995. Eight teams compete in the South Asian Football Federation Tournament.
The countries that compete in the tournaments are Afghanistan
Afghanistan national football team
The Afghanistan national football team is the national team of Afghanistan and is controlled by the Afghanistan Football Federation. The national team was founded in 1922 that joined FIFA in 1948 and the AFC in 1954...
, Bangladesh
Bangladesh national football team
The Bangladesh national football team is the national team of Bangladesh controlled by the Bangladesh Football Federation. It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation and has yet to qualify for the World Cup finals...
, Bhutan
Bhutan national football team
The Bhutan national football team is the national team of Bhutan and is controlled by the Bhutan Football Federation.- History :While a Bhutanese National football team has existed since the 1970s, it was officially founded in 1983 and joined FIFA in 2000....
, India
India national football team
The Indian national football team is the national football team of India and is governed by the All India Football Federation. It is a member of the Asian Football Confederation. Since 1948, the AIFF has been affiliated with FIFA, the international governing body for football. In 1954, AIFF became...
, Maldives
Maldives national football team
The Maldives national football team is the national team of the Maldives and is controlled by the Football Association of Maldives. A member of the AFC, it qualified for the second stage of Asian qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, where it drew with South Korea at home 0–0.Maldives most significant...
, Nepal
Nepal national football team
The Nepal national football team is the national team of Nepal and is controlled by the All Nepal Football Association. A member of the Asian Football Confederation , the Nepalese football team play their home games at Dasarath Rangasala Stadium located at Tripureswhor in Kathmandu. The All Nepal...
, Pakistan
Pakistan national football team
The Pakistan national football team is controlled by the Pakistan Football Federation and is a member of the Asian Football Confederation . The team has not yet qualified for either the FIFA World Cup or Asian Cup championships. Twice they have finished third in the South Asian Football Federation...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka national football team
The Sri Lanka national football team represents Sri Lanka in association football and is controlled by the Football Federation of Sri Lanka, the governing body for football in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka's home grounds are Sugathadasa Stadium and Kalutara Stadium and their head coach is Jang Jung...
. It is held every two years.
The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship kicked off in Kathmandu in 1997, evolving out of its forerunner, the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Gold Cup.
Since its inception, the biennial competition has developed into South Asia’s premier football tournament, promoting the regional development of the game.
Tournaments
| Year | Host | Final | Third Place Match | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Champion | Score | Runner-up | 3rd Place | Score | 4th Place | ||
| 1993 Details South Asian Association of Regional Co-operation Gold Cup 1993 The 1993 South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation Gold Cup was the first South Asian Football Federation Cup, held in Lahore, Pakistan between 16 July 1993 and 23 July 1993. The countries that competed in this tournament are India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Additionally a Pakistan... |
Pakistan |
n/a(1) | n/a(1) | ||||
| 1995 Details South Asian Gold Cup 1995 The 1995 South Asian Gold Cup was held in Colombo, Sri Lanka between 25 March 1995 and 2 April 1995. Originally 6 teams participated in the competition, but Maldives withdrew from the competition.-Group A:---------Group B:----... |
Sri Lanka |
1 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 1997 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 1997 The 1997 South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup was held in Kathmandu, Nepal between 4 September 1997 and 13 September 1997.-Group A:---------Group B:---------Semi-finals:-----Third Place Match:-Final:-Champion:... |
Nepal |
5 - 1 | 1 - 0 | ||||
| 1999 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 1999 The 1999 South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup was held in Goa, India between 22 January 1999 and 1 May 1999. The Nehru Stadium in Margao played host to all matches.-Group A:---------Group B:---------Semi-finals:----... |
India |
2 - 0 | 2 - 0 | ||||
| 2003 Details |
Bangladesh |
1 -1 (5 - 3) pens Penalty shootout (football) A penalty shoot-out, referred to as kicks from the penalty mark in the Laws of the Game, is the FIFA official term for a method used in association football to decide which team progresses to the next stage of a tournament following a tied game... |
2 -1 | ||||
| 2005 Details South Asian Football Federation Gold Cup 2005 The 2005 South Asian Football Federation Cup was hosted in Karachi, Pakistan from December 7 to December 17.Bangladesh and India played out the final in a repeat of the 1999 final. Just as in the 1999 final, India beat Bangladesh 2-0 with goals from Mehraj Din Wadoo and Baichung Bhutia. Bhutia was... |
Pakistan |
2 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 2008 Details |
Maldives Sri Lanka |
1 - 0 | n/a(2) | ||||
| 2009 Details |
Bangladesh |
(4) | 0 - 0 (3 - 1) pens Penalty shootout (football) A penalty shoot-out, referred to as kicks from the penalty mark in the Laws of the Game, is the FIFA official term for a method used in association football to decide which team progresses to the next stage of a tournament following a tied game... |
n/a(2) | |||
| 2011 Details 2011 South Asian Football Federation Cup The 2011 South Asian Football Federation Cup will be the ninth edition of SAFF Championship to be held in New Delhi, India. It was originally scheduled to take place in Orissa, India in December 2011, but was switched to New Delhi by the Executive Committee of the All India Football Federation on... |
India |
||||||
1Final tournaments in league table format.
2No third place playoff.
3Postponed from Oct/Nov 2001 to Jan/Feb 2002; then postponed due to suspension of Bangladesh FA from FIFA; tournament finally took place in 2003.
4India took part in the 2009 tournament with their U-23 team.
Most successful national teams
| Team | Champions | Runners-Up | Third-Place | Fourth-Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 (1993, 1997, 1999, 2005, 2009) | 2 (1995, 2008) | 1 (2003) | - | |
| 1 (2008) | 3 (1997, 2003, 2009) | 1 (1999) | - | |
| 1 (2003) | 2 (1999,2005) | 1 (1997) | - | |
| 1 (1995) | 1 (1993) | - | 1 (1997) | |
| - | - | 1 (1993) | 2 (1995,1999) | |
| - | - | 1 (1997) | 2 (1993,2003) | |
See also
- SAFF U-16 ChampionshipSAFF U-16 ChampionshipThe SAFF U-16 Championship is an annual international football competition contested by the national teams of the members of the South Asian Football Federation . The first edition of the tournament took place in Nepal in August 2011. The competition was launched under the leadership of SAFF...
- SAFF Championship 2008SAFF Championship 2008The 2008 SAFF Championship was held in Malé, Maldives and Colombo, Sri Lanka between June 3 and June 14, 2008. '.Initially, the tournament was due to be held in 2007 but was postponed to 2008.-Group A:--------------------...
- AFCAsian Football ConfederationThe Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football in Asia. It has 46 member countries, mostly located on the Asian continent. However, due to the disputed boundary of Europe and Asia, nations such as Russia and Turkey which are located mostly in geographic Asia are...
- South Asian Football FederationSouth Asian Football FederationSouth Asian Football Federation , founded in 1997, is an association of the football playing nations in South Asia. Its founding members are Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Bhutan joined the federation in 2000 and Afghanistan in 2005...
- AFC Asian CupAFC Asian CupThe AFC Asian Cup is an international association football tournament run by the Asian Football Confederation . It is the second oldest continental football championship in the world after Copa América. The winning team becomes the champion of Asia and automatically qualifies for the FIFA...
- East Asian CupEast Asian CupEast Asian Football Championship is an association football competition of East Asian countries and territories, held by the East Asian Football Federation ....
- Gulf Cup of NationsGulf Cup of NationsThe Gulf Cup of Nations , also known as Khaleeji followed by the edition of the games , is a football tournament currently held every two years rotating the host city every edition...
- ASEAN Football Championship
- West Asian Football Federation ChampionshipWest Asian Football Federation ChampionshipThe West Asian Football Federation Championship is a football competition of mainly West Asian countries and territories. The event is organised by West Asian Football Federation...
External links
