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India's men's under-20 football team qualified for the AFC U20 Asian Cup main tournament for the first time in 20 years, beating Bangladesh 3-0 at the Do'stlik Stadium in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on 6 September 2026.
Danny Meitei Laishram scored in the 25th minute, Vishal Yadav in the 60th and substitute Md Arbash in the 79th; Mahesh Gawali coached the side.
India finished second in Group B with six points from three matches and went through as one of the seven best runners-up across the eight qualifying groups.
India last played the main tournament in 2006, when it hosted the event; its best-ever result was the 1974 title, shared with Iran.
The AFC U20 Asian Cup 2027 will be held in Hangzhou, China, from 24 March to 10 April 2027, with the top four teams qualifying for the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2027.
India draw 2-2 with defending champions Iran in the final of the Asian Youth Championship and are declared joint winners, India's best result in the competition.
India play the main tournament as hosts, its last appearance before 2027.
Australia win the AFC U20 Asian Cup in China.
India beat Bangladesh 3-0 in Tashkent and qualify as one of the seven best runners-up.
AFC U20 Asian Cup finals in Hangzhou, China; top four qualify for the FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Governs association football in Asia and Australia and organises the AFC U20 Asian Cup; it has 47 member associations.
The national governing body for football in India and the AFC member association that fields the U20 team.
World governing body; the AFC U20 Asian Cup 2027 is the Asian qualifying route to the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2027, to be co-hosted by Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan.
General Awareness > Sports current affairs
General Awareness > Sports and tournaments
The biennial continental football championship for men's under-20 national teams in Asia, formerly the AFC Youth Championship and the AFC U-19 Championship.
A qualification device in which the second-placed teams across all groups are ranked against each other and the best of them advance, as India did in 2026.