History of Indian Football Players against European Opponents

The Indian senior men’s national football team will fly to Bahrain in March. There, they are going to play two friendlies against Bahrain and Belarus on March 23 and 26 respectively. These two matches are the build-up for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup third round qualifiers, which is starting in June. In anticipation of these exciting, upcoming international appearances, let us explore the history of Indian football players against European opponents.

Both Bahrain (91) and Belarus (94), their imminent rivals, are placed ahead of India (104) in the latest FIFA rankings.

So, this will be an opportunity for Igor Stimac’s men to test their mettle against stronger teams and countries.

History of Indian Football Players against European Opponents

More curiously, the Indian team will be playing against a European nation after more than a decade. Their last match was against Azerbaijan, and it ended in a 3-0 loss.

All in all, the Blue Tigers have played 16 times against a UEFA member association to date. And it wasn’t the best news – they have drawn twice, including once against France, and have lost the rest.

So, India’s men haven’t played football against European nations in Europe much. Largely, they played European nations during the Olympics and the Nehru Cup.

*Please note that Israel was part of AFC from 1954 to 1974. They would then go on to join UEFA later.