SAFF Unveils Bold Plan to Elevate Regional Football

Kathmandu, May 25 — At its recent Congress held in Kathmandu on Saturday, the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) unveiled a series of initiatives designed to foster a more competitive and community-focused football infrastructure across the area.

The Congress, which included representatives from all seven member associations—from Nepal, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives—witnessed universal backing for every suggested agenda item.

In addition to over a dozen items on the agenda, the Congress approved the activity report from the SAFF General Secretary, reviewed and agreed upon the financial statements for 2024, adopted the budget plan for 2025 which amounts to USD 2.48 million, and also sanctioned amendments to Articles 31.3 and 31.4 within the SAFF Constitution.

In like manner, the Congress supported the introduction of new competitions designed to foster growth within the region. Included among these initiatives is the proposal from SAFF for their inaugural Futsal Championship. Additionally, they plan to dedicate resources toward training technical officials and coaching staff specifically for this version of the game.

We have suggested organizing a school-level SAFF competition to strengthen our foundation,” stated SAFF’s General Secretary Purushottam Kattel. “At the senior level, we intend to launch club-based tournaments for both male and female participants.

The SAFF will examine the school academic schedules from various nations to establish a potential timeframe for the junior-level competition.

“As far as the club-level SAFF tournament is concerned, we will work closely with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to establish an appropriate schedule,” Kattel stated. The organization intends to launch a yearly competition exclusively for male clubs; however, their initial focus is on organizing this event for female teams initially.

Kattel announced that the inaugural edition of the women’s club competition will take place in Nepal during November of this year.

For the first time, SAFF granted media representatives complete access to its Congress, with the exception of a short, 10-minute private meeting involving the member associations.

By opening the Congress to the press, we aimed to maintain transparency,” stated Kattel. “The request for seclusion was limited to the concluding debate since it did not pertain to the public interest.

Although SAFF has announced an ambitious series of plans, achieving them could prove difficult.

Initially, the tournaments encounter a significant hurdle—securing involvement from every member country, particularly considering the historical tensions between India and Pakistan that escalated recently.

On April 24, SAFF delayed the 15th SAFF Championship, which was scheduled for June. The event was set to be held in a home-and-away format, potentially marking a significant change in South Asian football. Although the stated reason was additional time needed for preparations, the choice occurred mere days following the Pahalgam terrorist incident in Indian-administered Kashmir. Currently, the championship has been rescheduled for 2026.

When discussing the current India-Pakistan tensions, Kattel suggested finding an impartial location for the two sides,” he stated. Regardless of their political disagreements, both nations showed support for advancing SAFF’s objectives at the congress.

Pakistan, notably, did not participate in the SAFF U-19 Championship that concluded less than a week ago in Arunachal Pradesh, India.

Several SAFF members and officials spoke anonymously to the Post because of the sensitive nature of the topic. They concurred that had it not been for the rift between India and Pakistan, football—and sports in general—in South Asia might have progressed more rapidly, promoting unity throughout the area.

In the meantime, SAFF suggested collaborating with its member organizations to boost the count of Pro License coaches in the area.

Pricing for Pro License coaching courses is quite high, resulting in a scarcity of certified coaches in South Asia,” stated Kattel. “To address this issue, SAFF intends to offer financial assistance so that member organizations can register their coaches for these programs.

In his virtual address to the Congress, SAFF President KaziMd. Salahuddin stated that the federation needs to enhance its efforts. He emphasized, “We have to increase our endeavors.” “It’s crucial that we elevate our benchmarks and generate additional prospects for football within our area,” he added.

Furthermore, the SAFF Congress approved Ms. Zimbiri’s bid for membership in the SAFF Executive Committee. As the head of the women’s football committee at the Bhutan Football Federation (BFF) and an executive committee member of BFF, she was elected uncontested.