India has been drawn to interesting Qualifying Groups of the AFC U-16 Championship 2014 and the AFC U-19 Championship 2014.
The Indian U-16 national team will face Kuwait, Tajikistan, Lebanon and Bhutan in Group A, which will be played in Kuwait. It is a doable group for the Indian boys and the hopes are high to earn a spot in the finals scheduled to take place in Thailand.
A total of 43 nations have been drawn to ten groups. The AFC U-16 Championship 2014 Qualifying Group winners and the best five runners-up will join host Thailand in the finals next year.
The Indian U-19 national team will join Uzbekistan, Qatar, Turkmenistan and Nepal in Group A of the AFC U-19 Championship 2014 qualifiers. Group A will be played in Qatar and the finals will be hosted by Myanmar in October 2014. The group winners of the nine groups alongside with the six best-placed sides and hosts Myanmar will be seen in action at the finals next year.
The AFC U-16 Championship 2014 and the AFC U-19 Championship 2014 will serve as the Asian Qualifiers for the respective FIFA World Cup in the two age groups. The four semi-finalists of the AFC U-16 Championship 2014 will qualify for the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile, while the four semi-finalists of the AFC U-19 Championship 2014 would book their tickets for the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand.
AFC U-16 Championship 2014 – The Qualifying Groups
Group A: Kuwait, India, Tajikistan, Lebanon, Bhutan
Group B: Uzbekistan, Yemen, Palestine, Maldives
Group C: Iraq, Bahrain, Nepal, Turkmenistan
Group D: Syria, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Jordan
Group E: Iran, United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, Sri Lanka
Group F: Oman, Qatar, Bangladesh, Kyrgyzstan
Group G: Australia, Singapore, Hongkong, Chinese Taipei, Macau
Group H: South Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Guam, Brunei
Group I: China, North Korea, Myanmar, Northern Mariana Islands
Group J: Japan, Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines
AFC U-19 Championship 2014 – The Qualifying Groups
Group A: Uzbekistan, Qatar, India, Turkmenistan, Nepal
Group B: Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Maldives, Afghanistan
Group C: Iraq, Kuwait, Pakistan, Bangladesh
Group D: Iran, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Tajikistan
Group E: Syria, Oman, Bahrain, Palestine
Group F: Australia, Vietnam, Chinese Taipei, Mongolia, Hongkong
Group G: South Korea, Indonesia, Laos, Guam, Philippines
Group H: North Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Brunei
Group I: Japan, China, Malaysia, Macau