Bhubaneswar To Host Intercontinental Cup From June 9

The senior men’s national team will play in the Intercontinental Cup in 2023 in Bhubaneswar, the AIFF declared on Wednesday. From June 9 to June 18, four teams—Hosts India, Lebanon, Mongolia, and Vanuatu—will compete in the FIFA International Window’s Intercontinental Cup. The Intercontinental Cup will be conducted for the third time; the first two events took place in Mumbai (2018) and Ahmedabad (2019). Manipur held the Tri-Nation international football event earlier last month.

“Imphal had the pleasure of playing international football in March, and now it is Bhubaneswar’s turn to add to the nation’s expanding list of international football grounds. The FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup was held in Bhubaneswar, one of the locations, and as a result, the government of Odisha built some fantastic infrastructure. The U-17 Women’s World Cup left behind a legacy that made it possible for the Senior Men’s National Team to play in the city for the first time ever. Because it was a first-time event in Manipur, we are optimistic that supporters in Odisha would show the same level of passion for the occasion. We are also hopeful that Odisha football will benefit greatly from hosting the Hero Intercontinental Cup”  said AIFF Secretary General Dr. Shaji Prabhakaran.

The men’s national team of India had never faced Vanuatu or Mongolia before. The hosts have a history of six games against Lebanon. The Blue Tigers have gone five games without losing at home; this record started on June 8, 2022, when they defeated Cambodia 2-0 in Kolkata’s Round 3 of the AFC Asian Cup 2023 Qualifiers. Igor Stimac’s team has since defeated Afghanistan (2-1), Hong Kong (4-0), and then advanced to the Tri-Nation tournament where they defeated Myanmar (1-0) and the Kyrgyz Republic (2-0) in Imphal.