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The Indian men’s football squad is set to commence its second round of qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2026, facing Kuwait in a Group A encounter on Thursday at the Jaber al-Ahmad International Stadium. The remaining squads in Group A consist of Qatar and Afghanistan.
How does the qualification process work?
The 2026 AFC World Cup qualifiers’ second stage comprises 36 teams organized into nine groups, each consisting of four teams. Within each group, the teams will engage in a round-robin format, playing both home and away matches. The leading teams in each group will progress to the third round of qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, securing a direct entry into the 2027 AFC Asian Cup hosted in Saudi Arabia.
India, captained by Sunil Chhetri, holds the second position in Group A with a ranking of 102, trailing behind Qatar, who is ranked at 61. The team is scheduled to face Qatar in a home match at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar on November 21, followed by an away match in Qatar on June 11.
India vs Kuwait kick-off, telecast and live streaming info
The FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifying game between India and Kuwait is scheduled to commence at 10:00 PM IST on Thursday, November 16, at the Jaber al-Ahmad International Stadium. Viewers can catch the live stream of the India vs. Kuwait match on the Sony LIV app and website.
FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC Qualifiers: Indian football squad
Goalkeepers
- Amrinder Singh
- Gurpreet Singh Sandhu
- Vishal Kaith
Defenders
- Akash Mishra
- Lalchungnunga
- Mehtab Singh
- Nikhil Poojary
- Rahul Bheke
- Roshan Singh Naorem
- Sandesh Jhingan
- Subhasish Bose
Midfielders
- Anirudh Thapa
- Brandon Fernandes
- Glan Peter Martins
- Lalengmawia
- Liston Colaco
- Mahesh Singh Naorem
- Nandhakumar Sekar
- Rohit Kumar
- Sahal Abdul Samad
- Suresh Singh Wangjam
- Udanta Singh Kumam
Forwards
- Ishan Pandita
- Lallianzuala Chhangte
- Manvir Singh
- Rahul Kannoly Praveen
- Sunil Chhetri
- Vikram Partap Singh
Full Schedule of India’s FIFA World Cup 2026 AFC 2nd round of Qualifiers
- Kuwait vs India – November 16 – 10 PM – Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, Kuwait City
- India vs Qatar – November 21 – 7:00 PM – Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar
- Afghanistan vs India – March 21, 2024
- India vs Afghanistan – March 26, 2024
- India vs Kuwait – June 6, 2024
- Qatar vs India – June 11, 2024
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