India has been placed in Group E alongside Malaysia, Syria and Iraq for the AFC U-17 Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers, with the competition set to take place in Amman, Jordan, from October 5 to 11.
The draw was conducted at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) House in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, confirming India’s route to a place in the continental championship scheduled for next year.
India will open its qualifying campaign against Iraq before facing Syria in its second fixture. The team will conclude the group stage against hosts Malaysia in what could prove to be a decisive encounter. The qualifiers will follow a centralised single round-robin format, with only the winner of each of the eight groups securing a place in the AFC U-17 Women’s Asian Cup.
The 2027 edition of the tournament will be held in Suzhou, China, from March 31 to April 17. India will be aiming to qualify for consecutive editions of the competition after making history in the previous tournament by reaching the knockout stage for the first time.
The eight group winners from the qualifying campaign will join four teams that have already booked direct qualification based on their performances in the 2026 AFC U-17 Women’s Asian Cup. Defending champions North Korea, runners-up Japan, semifinalists Australia and hosts China have all secured automatic places in the finals.
The stakes are high for every team involved, as the four semifinalists at the AFC U-17 Women’s Asian Cup will earn qualification for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, which will be held in Morocco later in 2027.
The qualifying draw produced eight groups featuring teams from across the continent. Group A includes Korea Republic, Jordan, Tajikistan and the United Arab Emirates, while Group B consists of Indonesia, Singapore, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. Other groups feature nations including Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar, the Philippines, Bangladesh and Uzbekistan.
For India, the focus will now shift to preparations ahead of three crucial matches. A strong start against Iraq will be followed by a meeting with Syria before the campaign concludes against Malaysia. With only the group winner progressing to the finals, every match will carry significant importance as India looks to continue its recent progress on the continental stage.
