3 major tournaments the Indian football team won in 2023
It was a memorable year for the Indian men's football team as they managed to gain a lot of success on the pitch. They even started the second round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifiers with a 1-0 away victory against Kuwait.
However, this was followed by a 3-0 defeat at the hands of the current Asian champions, Qatar, at home.
Still, the year 2023 will be remembered for several good performances and remarkable results that Igor Stimac's team produced. The Indian football fans will be hoping that their team maintains the momentum and starts 2024 on a memorable note too. Their next challenge is the upcoming 2024 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar.
Before we enter the new year, let us look back at the three major tournaments the Blue Tigers won in 2023.
#3 Tri-Nation Tournament
The 2023 Tri-Nation Tournament featuring hosts India, Kyrgyzstan, and Myanmar was held in Imphal's Khuman Lampak Main Stadium in March this year. India began the tournament on a positive note with a 1-0 victory against Myanmar, as Anirudh Thapa found the back of the net for the hosts.
With the second game between Myanmar and Kyrgyzstan ending in a 1-1 draw, India and Kyrgyzstan advanced to the final. Sunil Chhetri's men put up a dominating display of football in front of a passionate Imphal crowd in the final.
With Sandesh Jhingan and Sunil Chhetri scoring a goal apiece, India won the tournament comfortably with a 2-0 margin against Kyrgyzstan. The previous edition was also won by them, back in 2017, having defeated Saint Kitts & Nevis in the final held at Mumbai.
#2 Intercontinental Cup
Four teams participated in the 2023 Intercontinental Cup - hosts India, Lebanon, Vanuatu, and Mongolia. A total of seven matches were played with the tournament which was held from June 9 to 18, 2023, at Bhubaneswar's Kalinga Stadium.
Out of the three games played in the round robin stage, India won the first two matches against Mongolia (2-0) and Vanuatu (1-0) while the game against Lebanon ended in a 0-0 stalemate.
India and Lebanon advanced to the final which the hosts won 2-0, with skipper Sunil Chhetri and Lallianzuala Chhangte scoring the goals. Thereby, the Blue Tigers clinched their second Intercontinental Cup title having won the inaugural edition in 2018 against Kenya.
#1 SAFF Championship
The 2023 SAFF Championship was the 14th edition of this prestigious tournament with a total of eight teams taking part. The participating nations were divided into two groups, with four teams each in Group A and Group B.
The hosts were drawn in Group A alongside Kuwait, arch-rivals Pakistan, and Nepal. All 15 matches were played at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru from June 21 to July 4, 2023.
India won the first two group fixtures against Pakistan (4-0) and Nepal (2-0) while the final group match against Kuwait ended in a 1-1 draw. Thus, on the virtue of more goals scored, Kuwait (eight goals) advanced to the semifinal as group winner.
India (seven goals) came second in Group A despite both the teams finishing on seven points each with the same goal difference of +6.
Kuwait defeated Bangladesh 1-0 in the first semifinal and India got the better of Lebanon by winning 4-2 on penalty shootout, thus advancing to the summit clash. The hosts had to battle it hard in the final to defend their SAFF Championship title as the game headed towards a penalty shootout with the scores being 1-1, even after 120 minutes of intense action.
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was the savior yet again in the penalty shootout, making two important saves when it mattered the most to send the vociferous Kanteerava crowd into delirium. Stimac's men thereby defeated Kuwait 5-4 on penalties to claim their record ninth SAFF Championship title.