When it was announced that India would face big names Panama, Brazil and Uruguay in succession, it took goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu by surprise.

“It was unexpected, to be honest. Like everyone else, we wanted to see if this was actually happening,” Gurpreet said on the eve of the India-Panama clash here.

Now that these high-profile matches are a reality, the shotstopper is keen to make the most of them. “We must make sure that we use this opportunity to gain something out of it. On paper, these games look really good because of the opponents we are facing. But every single game is special when you get to play for your country. It does not matter who we face. We want to win,” Sandhu said.

Head coach Khalid Jamil defended the exclusion of senior players Sandesh Jhingan and Lallianzuala Chhangte, stating that he intends to put together a “new team”.

“Yes, I have left some seniors out, but it does not mean that they cannot make a comeback. We are thinking about building a new team. We have young players who need to play more matches,” Jamil said.

While the Indian Super League has announced that the league will begin on October 10, it has yet to release the full fixtures.

It is expected that Chennaiyin FC’s home matches at the Nehru Stadium will begin by the end of October.

Speaking to The Hindu here on Tuesday, stadium officer P. Vengatesan said work was progressing at full speed. “Most probably, the match in Chennai will be in the last week of October. It will be held on October 31, I think,” he said.

Vengatesan said the stands were almost ready, with the chairs freshly painted and the sprinklers installed. “The gallery work is over. We have painted the chairs… the galleries and the water sprinklers are also ready,” he added.

The authorities are hopeful of completing the work well ahead of the first match. Chennaiyin FC will apply heavy fertiliser in three days to give the grass a dark-green appearance while the club is also sorting out the barricading work inside the stadium.

“Whatever Chennaiyin has requested, we have given them,” said Vengatesan.

Uruguay coach Diego Forlan has named a 46-man provisional squad for the team’s Asia tour in September-October, which includes a friendly against India at the Salt Lake Stadium on October 6.

The match will be played three days after India’s much-anticipated clash against Brazil at the same venue on October 3. The squad, announced by the Uruguayan Football Association, includes 21 players from the 26-member squad picked for the recent World Cup.

Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde, Ronald Araujo, Rodrigo Bentancur and Darwin Nunez are among the star names. Nahitan Nandez and former Arsenal midfielder Lucas Torreira have also returned while naturalised player Alexander Barboza has received a call-up.

However, veteran striker Luis Suarez has not been included in Forlan’s first provisional squad. There were rumours that the Inter Miami forward, who has not played for Uruguay since 2024, could make an international return. Forlan’s presence will be an added attraction for the Indian football fans. The 2010 World Cup Golden Ball winner played for Mumbai City FC during the early years of the Indian Super League.

The provisional Uruguay squad: Goalkeepers: Santiago Mele, Cristopher Fiermarin, Ignacio de Arruabarrena, Sebastian Jaume, Thiago Cardozo; Defenders: Kevin Amaro, Jose Luis Rodriguez, Guillermo Varela, Nahitan Nandez, Santiago Mourino, Nicolas Marichal, Ronald Araujo, Alexander Barboza, Jose Maria Gimenez, Juan Rodriguez, Sebastian Boselli, Santiago Bueno, Sebastian Caceres, Mathias Olivera, Joaquin Piquerez, Lucas Olaza, Marcelo Saracchi, Juan Manuel Sanabria.

Midfielders: Emiliano Martinez, Lucas Torreira, Rodrigo Bentancur, Facundo Bernal, Santiago Homenchenko, Federico Valverde, Agustin Canobbio, Matias Abaldo, Facundo Pellistri, Luciano Rodriguez, Maximiliano Araujo, Lucas Villalba, Brian Rodriguez, Rodrigo Zalazar, Diego Rossi, Giorgian de Arrascaeta; Forwards: Martin Satriano, Agustin A. Martinez, Rodrigo Aguirre, Federico Vinas, Miguel Merentiel, Darwin Nunez, Alvaro Rodriguez.

East Bengal FC pulled off a sensational comeback to defeat Kuwait’s Al Arabi SC 4-1 in extra time in the AFC Champions League Two qualifier at the Salt Lake Stadium on Wednesday.

The win helped EBFC qualify for the group stage of the tournament.

The ISL champion started positively, with Palestinian midfielder Basim Rashid’s powerful effort from outside the box forcing a fine save from Sulaiman Abdulghafoor.

The visitor came close in the 23rd minute when Kenean Maleko’s effort nearly slipped between Prabhsukhan Gill’s legs, but the EBFC custodian recovered to prevent the ball from crossing the line.

Al Arabi took the lead in the 76th after Sandip Mandi brought down Maleko inside the box. Nigerian forward Anayo Iwuala converted the resulting penalty. With a defeat looming large, the host found a dramatic equaliser when Jay Gupta headed home from a Rashid free-kick in the 90th.

EBFC showed better endurance against a tiring opponent and took complete control in the second session of extra time. Rashid produced a superb angled half-volley in the 108th minute to put EBFC ahead.

Substitute David Hmar made it 3-1 in the 117th minute, scoring from a rebound after Chris Ikonomidis’ effort was saved. Rohit Danu completed the remarkable comeback in the 120th, converting Hmar’s assist to seal East Bengal’s passage to the group stage of the tournament proper.

The result: East Bengal FC 4 (Jay 90, Rashid 108, Hmar 117, Rohit 120) bt Al Arabi SC 1 (Iwuala 76-pen) aet.

Defending Indian Super League champion East Bengal FC faces a tough continental test when it meets Kuwaiti league runner-up Al Arabi SC in an AFC Champions League Two preliminary-stage knockout match at the Salt Lake Stadium on Wednesday.

East Bengal returns to the competition after featuring in the AFC Challenge League in the 2024-25 season. It lost the ACL Two qualifying tie to Turkmenistan’s Altyn Asyr after qualifying as the Super Cup winner.

This time, the Kolkata giant has earned its place after winning India’s top league, and will be eager to make the opportunity count.

The victor of this match will advance to the ACL Two group league stage.

East Bengal began the new season under experienced Spanish coach Antonio Lopez Habas, who has replaced compatriot Oscar Bruzon, the man who guided the club to its first top-flight league title in 22 years.

The club has also revamped its foreign contingent while retaining Palestinian playmaker Basim Rashid. Spanish midfielder Dani Ramirez and Australian midfielder Chris Ikonomidis are available for selection.

However, East Bengal faces defensive concerns. Spanish centre-back Nacho Monsalve is out with a knee injury, while the other experienced defender Lalchungnunga is suspended following his red card against FC Arkadag in last year’s AFC Challenge League quarterfinal.

Habas could therefore be forced to field an all-Indian defence led by Anwar Ali.

Al Arabi, which spent over a month preparing in Turkiye, possesses significant attacking quality, with Palestinian Zaid Qunbar, Brazilian Lucas Shallon and Nigerian Anayo Iwuala among their key threats.

Jamshedpur FC, which won the Indian Super League Shield in 2022, will not participate in the ISL from the 2026-27 season onwards.

The club made the announcement after the expiry of the All India Football Federation’s extended July 31 deadline for payment of the first instalment of the participation fee (Rs. 55 lakh).

While JFC, which finished sixth in 2025-26, has decided to fold its operations, the club stated that Jamshedpur Football and Sporting Private Limited will continue to work within Indian football in other capacities.

“We will continue in our endeavour to promote and develop the game of football, including at the grassroots level. We will continue to identify and develop young football talent across India to create a strong pathway for players from grassroots to national and international football,” JFC said in a statement.

The Red Miners made their ISL debut in 2017-18 and finished fifth in two consecutive seasons. After a disappointing 2019-20 campaign, Owen Coyle was appointed manager, and under the Scotsman, it became only the third club — after FC Goa and Mumbai City FC — to win the League Winners’ Shield.

Owned and managed by Tata Steel, JFC was the only club in the Indian topflight to own its stadium and training facilities. Its withdrawal from ISL adds to the uncertainty surrounding Indian football, with the league already navigating administrative and governance challenges in recent months.

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) announced on Wednesday that the commercial rights of the Indian Super League (ISL) have been handed over to the 14 participating clubs ahead of the 2026-27 season. The agreement between the AIFF and teams will see the ISL move to a club-run model for the next four years.

“We are giving the clubs the commercial rights for this league. The AIFF shall hold on to the administrative aspects of organising the league,” M. Satyanarayan, AIFF’s deputy secretary general, said in his opening remarks at a press conference. “Over the next 24 hours, we will send a letter to all the clubs giving them two weeks to confirm their participation for next season,” he later added.

The development follows long-standing uncertainty surrounding the top tier of Indian football. The 2025-26 season was in limbo for many months amid the expiry of the Master Rights Agreement (MRA) between the AIFF and Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL) and a protracted legal battle. It was eventually held in a truncated format from February to May.

The 2026-27 edition will return to a full-fledged, home-and-away arrangement. The organisers are aiming to start the new campaign on September 4.

Mandar Tamhane, CEO of NorthEast United FC, said that the club-led model is followed by established leagues around the world. “It is uncharted territory for all of us. Hopefully, it will be beneficial for everybody involved,” Tamhane said.

According to Ravi Puskur, CEO of FC Goa, financial sustainability of the league has to be the key focus going forward. “The entire process has to be driven by that. It has to be run based on how much money the clubs can recover,” Puskur felt. “It is our intention to put out a Request for Proposal (RFP) to get a broadcaster on board as soon as possible. That is our next priority.”

While the agreement is for four years, the clubs have been granted the option of exiting this framework at the end of two years. “The way the clubs have come forward and shown confidence, I don’t see that happening,” Satyanarayan said optimistically.

Jaswinder Singh, a football coach of Indian-origin, was recently appointed as the head coach of FC Jurong, one of Singapore’s most successful clubs.

The Singaporean has been part of the club’s youth teams since 2020 and has steadily risen through the ranks. In a chat with The Hindu, the 38-year-old spoke about his Indian connection and said that both countries can learn from each other to develop the sport.

“I have been following Indian football. Over the past decade, I believe there have been some positives, such as India cracking the top 100 in the world ranking, Bengaluru’s AFC Cup run, as well as hosting the U-17 World Cup, to just to name a few,” said Jaswinder, who will take over at FC Jurong, which is part-owned by Indian firm SkaSports, from the 2026-27 season.

“India is definitely a country with great sporting potential and has made some great strides in the last decade. But I believe consistency is the key factor everyone is looking for. I would definitely be interested in collaborating should something come up in the near future,” he added.

Cooperation

On the possible areas of cooperation, Jaswinder explained, “I think both countries have vast expertise that can be exchanged that could help either side improve. For example, the use of technology in football.”

Similarly, he felt there were lessons to be learned from India’s diverse culture. “I think the idea of bringing together players from different States, cultures and spoken languages and getting these players to fight for a common cause is something we can always improve on despite our relatively small size as a country,” he said.

Regarding his personal ties to India, Jaswinder — whose grandparents were from the Tarn Taran district in Punjab — revealed that he keeps visiting the country and is proud of his roots.

“As a person of Sikh heritage, I maintain a strong connection to my cultural and spiritual roots by regularly visiting Amritsar and the Golden Temple.

“These visits allow me to stay connected to my traditions, values, and community, while also providing an opportunity for reflection and personal growth,” he said.