Riyadh's King Fahd Int'l Stadium to host Santosh Trophy semis & final

Bhubaneswar: The semi-finals and final of the 76th National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy, to be held abroad for the first time ever, are set to take place between March 1 to 4, 2023, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, it was announced here on Thursday.

The AIFF Secretary General Dr Shaji Prabhakaran, along with Mr Avijit Paul, Executive Committee Member, AIFF, and Joint Secretary, Football Association of Odisha, made the announcement here on the eve of the launch of the Santosh Trophy.

Dr Prabhakaran informed the media that it was decided in a meeting between the AIFF and the Saudi Arabia Football Federation (SAFF) earlier in the day that the iconic King Fahd International Stadium will play host to semi-finals and finals of the Hero Santosh Trophy.

The timings of the aforementioned matches will be announced at a later date.

"This is a great moment for Indian football, as the four states that make it to the semifinals will get to fight for the Santosh Trophy title in Saudi Arabia. I would like to convey my sincere thanks to the SAFF for all their help and cooperation in helping us achieve this vision of taking the Hero Santosh Trophy to a next level," said Dr Prabhakaran.

"I would also like to profusely thank the Government of Odisha for extending their massive and continuing support in hosting the 12 teams in the final rounds of the Santosh Trophy," he added.

The AIFF Secretary General pointed out that this would make the final round, beginning on Friday, here in Bhubaneswar, an even more interesting and competitive event.

"The battle for the last four is likely to be an intense one, and we all hope that the fight will go down to the wire to book a spot on the international stage, which will be the first time since 1941, when the Santosh Trophy was launched as a six-venue tournament with the final being played in Kolkata," he said.

The Secretary General also spoke at length about the development of football across the country, something that has been presented by the Federation in Vision 2047, earlier this year.

The final rounds of the Santosh Trophy are set to get underway in Bhubaneswar, Odisha from February 10-20.

Twelve teams have been divided into two groups of six each in the Final Rounds, and will play each other in a round robin format; the top two teams from each group will have the honour of being the first teams in the Santosh Trophy to play on foreign soil, once they move to Riyadh for the semifinals and final.