The All-India Football Federation (AIFF) is happy to announce that the U20 Women’s National Team has been awarded USD 25,000 for their exceptional performance, which earned India a spot in the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup for the first time in twenty years.
In 2006, India made their last appearance at the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup.
Prior to defeating hosts Myanmar (1-0) in front of a full house at the Thuwunna Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar, the India U20 women put on some impressive performances and went undefeated in their Group D qualifying campaign, playing Indonesia (0-0) and Turkmenistan (7-0). During this campaign, they did not give up a single goal.
However, the hard work done behind the scenes with consistent planning and development efforts over the previous few years, as well as the results on the field, are directly comparable. Taking no quick cuts, India’s AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup qualifying was the direct result of the systematic planning and long-term vision implemented at the local level.
The Sports Authority of India (SAI) and the AIFF have worked together on a number of projects aimed at bolstering women’s football’s youth and grassroots organizations. The ASMITA Women’s Football Leagues is one such program that saw the effective operation of 155 leagues at the U13, U15, and U17 levels around the nation between 2023 and 2025. The number of junior players who participated increased from 6,305 in the 2023–24 edition to 8,658 in the 2024–25 season.
The U13 ASMITA Football Leagues 2025-26 started last month, marking the continuation of the ASMITA Football Leagues in the 2025–26 season. About 8,000 players from about 400 teams will compete in the U13 competitions, which will take place in 50 tournaments spread across 26 states.
The number of women football players in India who are registered has increased by 232% in the last 12 months as a result of these initiatives.
Since arriving in camp in December 2024, the U20 ladies have participated in the Pink Ladies Youth Cup in Turkey, where they have defeated teams from Hong Kong and Jordan. Before the Young Tigresses played Uzbekistan U20s in two friendly in Tashkent (1-1 and 4-1), several of the U20 players trained with the senior squad in preparation for the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers. Since December 2024, the India U20 women’s team has spent a total of 135 days training together at the preparation camp.
In the future, the AIFF is still totally dedicated to making sure that the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup 2026, which is set to take place in Thailand in April 2026, is prepared as well it can be. In order to arrange lengthy training camps and guarantee the squad excellent international exposure, the Federation will collaborate closely with all parties involved.
Through training, the Federation hopes to prepare the players to compete with the best in Asia in addition to making them intellectually and physically strong. The AIFF is also considering its options for securing top-tier opponents to participate in practice matches.
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