NEW DELHI: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) announced on Friday that the Indian football team will be visiting China for the first time in its footballing history to play an international friendly game against the hosts in October.
Although the dates are yet to be finalized, the match is set to take place in the Chinese capital of Beijing.
India and China have gone head-to-head on 17 occasions so far, with the former having hosted all the matches and never winning any of them. The significance of this match is enhanced further, considering that the two teams squared off the last time 21 years ago during the Nehru Cup in Kochi in 1997.
Adding to that, this could be a great opportunity for India to prepare for the AFC Asia Cup in January 2019 in the UAE.
AIFF secretary Kushal Das commented on the development, labelling the occasion as ‘historic’.
“China and India are today being seen as the two fastest emerging football markets, globally. We are happy to have come to the conclusion of our month-long discussion with the Chinese FA, and I thank our marketing partners FSDL for their involvement and cooperation.”
“The opportunity presents us with an opportunity not just break the two-decade deadlock, but also provides us with a chance to revive the neighbouring rivalry,” Das said.
