Lebanon, a Western Asian footballing powerhouse, has announced that they would be taking part in the forthcoming regional footballing event. This means that Lebanon will be in a position to compete with India for the right to defend their SAFF Championship title.
Lebanon is now ranked 99th in FIFA, which is two places higher than the record eight-time champions India and 93 positions higher than Bangladesh.
The 14th iteration of the tournament will take place in Bengaluru, India, from June 21st to July 4th. The reigning champions and all-time record holders for most victories in the competition will be India.
In an interview with The Daily Star on Monday, the general secretary of the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) verified the news.
“Lebanon has made it official that they will be competing in the next SAFF Championship. They have given their word that the senior squad would be participating in the tournament. According to Helal, “the increased visibility of the competition throughout the region and beyond will undoubtedly be the result of their participation in conjunction with that of Kuwait.”
Before playing in the SAFF Championship as one of the two guest teams with Kuwait, Lebanon will be participating in the Intercontinental Cup in India during the June FIFA window (June 9-18). This tournament will take place throughout the month of June and will take place alongside India, Mongolia, and Vanuatu.
As a result of their participation, the SAFF Championship will include a total of eight teams, of whom four teams will compete in each of two groups.
Helal said that SAFF may push up the draw for the tournament from May 21, which was previously scheduled to May 21 due to the non-confirmation of the eighth team. The draw was originally deferred to May 21 owing to the non-confirmation of the eighth team.