The Indian women's football team is set to face Timor Leste in their second Group B match of the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers on Sunday in Thailand. India comes into the match on the heels of a dominant 13-0 victory over Mongolia and aims to maintain its winning momentum.
Despite Timor Leste's lower FIFA ranking of 158, Indian coach Crispin Chettri anticipates a more challenging encounter than the one against Mongolia. Chettri noted that Timor Leste is a better-organized team defensively compared to both Mongolia and Iraq. He highlighted their preference for counter-attacks and their ability to maintain possession in patches. Chettri and his coaching staff were present at the 700th Anniversary of Chiang Mai Stadium to watch Timor Leste restrict Thailand, ranked 46th, to just four goals.
India, currently ranked 70th in the world, has never faced Timor Leste in international football before. Timor Leste, coached by Indonesian Emral bin Bustamam, has had more international experience compared to Mongolia. They finished fourth in the 2024 AFF Women's Cup, drawing against Laos and Singapore. They have also participated in four editions of the ASEAN Women's Championship, with their only official victory being a 2-1 win over Singapore in 2019. Their recent 0-0 draw with Iraq marked their first-ever point in an AFC competition.
The match will be held at the 700th Anniversary of Chiang Mai Stadium in Thailand. The game can be streamed live on the Changsuek YouTube Channel and the Thai Women's Football Facebook Page.
India's schedule for the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers is as follows: * June 23: Mongolia vs India (2:30 PM IST) - India won 13-0 * June 29: India vs Timor Leste (2:30 PM IST) * July 2: India vs Iraq (2:30 PM IST) * July 5: Thailand vs India (6:00 PM IST)
The AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers feature a total of 34 teams divided into eight groups. The winner of each group will qualify for the 12-team AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026, which will be held in Australia from March 1 to 26. India is aiming to qualify for the AFC Women's Asian Cup through the qualification route for the first time, with their last appearance in the tournament being in 2003. Although India hosted the 2022 edition, they had to withdraw due to a COVID-19 outbreak within the team.
