File photo of Indian football team© X (Twitter)
India’s international football friendly against Panama has been advanced by a day from the scheduled September 26 as the Sree Kanteerava Stadium, the venue of the match, will host the Bengaluru Marathon on September 27. Since the Kanteerava Stadium will serve as the starting and finishing point of the marathon race, it will be difficult to host the India vs Panama football match the next day as per the earlier schedule, according to sources. The match will now be held on September 25. “We are now going to advance the India-Panama match by a day. It will now be held on September 25,” a Karnataka State Football Association (KSFA) source told PTI.
On August 27, the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru was chosen by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) as the venue for India’s international friendly against 2026 World Cup participants Panama.
The fixture will mark the Blue Tigers’ first appearance in Bengaluru since their SAFF Championship 2023 campaign, when India lifted the title on home soil after defeating Kuwait in the final at the same venue.
Panama, currently ranked 44th in the world, will provide India with a high-quality test. The Central American nation featured at the FIFA World Cup 2026, adding further significance to the game.
It will be India’s first friendly against a World Cup-playing nation in a busy international period, coming exactly one week before they take on the five-time world champions Brazil in Kolkata on October 3. India will also play against Uruguay on October 6, also in Kolkata.
Bengaluru has previously witnessed India record a victory over a high-ranked opposition when the Blue Tigers won 1-0 against the United Arab Emirates (ranked 54 places above India then) in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers in 2001. Twenty-five years later, the city will once again host India against a highly ranked opponent.
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