Indian football team will kick-start their 2024 season with a face-off against Australia in the AFC Asian Cup 2023 in Qatar on 13th January 2024 led by Sunil Chhetri.
India are in Group B in the tournament with Australia, Uzbekistan and Syria.
Indian football team are the lowest-rank side in their group.
Before taking on Qatar in November 2023 in the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, India remain unbeaten for the entire year on their home ground.
India named a strong 26-member squad for Asia’s premier football tournament and remain upbeat for the challenging campaign.
Format of AFC Asia Cup 2023
24 Asian teams are participating in the AFC Asian Cup 2023 and are divide into 6 groups with 4 teams each.
Top 2 teams from each group after facing each other will advance to the knockout stages.
While top 4 third-place teams across 6 groups will qualify for the next round.
The tournament is being play in Qatar after it was move out of China due to COVID-19.
Groups of AFC Asian Cup 2023
| GROUP | TEAMS |
| Group A | Qatar, China, Tajikistan, Lebanon |
| Group B | Australia, Uzbekistan, Syria, India |
| Group C | Iran, UAE, Hong Kong, Palestine |
| Group D | Japan, Indonesia, Iraq, Vietnam |
| Group E | South Korea, Jordan, Malaysia, Bahrain |
| Group F | Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Kyrgyzstan, Oman |
Schedule (India) for AFC Asian Cup 2023
India will open their campaign against Australia at Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar on 13th January 2024 and the tournament will kick off with a clash between defending champions Qatar and Lebanon at the Lusail Stadium on 12th January 2024.
India will next take on Uzbekistan and Syria on 18th January 2024 and 23rd January 2024 respectively.
The knockout stage of the tournament will be play from 28th January 2024 and the summit clash will be held at Lusail Stadium on 10th February 2024.
| DATE | MATCH | TIME/VENUE |
| 13th January, 2024 | Australia vs India | (17:00 IST, Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan) |
| 18th January, 2024 | India vs Uzbekistan | (20:00 IST, Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan) |
| 23rd January, 2024 | Syria vs India | (17:00 IST, Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor) |
Telecast of AFC Asian Cup 2023 in India
The Sports18 Network will broadcast India’s matches live in the country.
Live Streaming of AFC Asian Cup 2023 in India
JioCinema will live-stream the tournament on its mobile app and website.
India Squad for AFC Asian Cup 2023
| POSITION | PLAYERS |
| Goalkeepers | Amrinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Vishal Kaith. |
| Defenders | Akash Mishra, Lalchungnunga, Mehtab Singh, Nikhil Poojary, Pritam Kotal, Rahul Bheke, Sandesh Jhingan, Subhasish Bose. |
| Midfielders | Anirudh Thapa, Brandon Fernandes, Deepak Tangri, Lalengmawia Ralte, Liston Colaco, Naorem Mahesh Singh, Sahal Abdul Samad, Suresh Singh Wangjam, Udanta Singh. |
| Forwards | Ishan Pandita, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Manvir Singh, Rahul Kannoly Praveen, Sunil Chhetri, Vikram Partap Singh. |
