Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi

New Delhi, Aug 11: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has announced a reward of USD 25,000 for the U20 women’s national team following their historic qualification for the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup for the first time since 2006. The Young Tigresses remained unbeaten in their Group D qualifying campaign, drawing 0-0 with Indonesia, thrashing Turkmenistan 7-0, and defeating hosts Myanmar 1-0 in front of a packed Thuwunna Stadium in Yangon. Remarkably, they did not concede a single goal throughout the qualifiers.

AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey attributed the achievement to years of structured grassroots development in women’s football. In partnership with the Sports Authority of India, initiatives such as the ASMITA Women’s Football Leagues have strengthened the pipeline of talent, with over 8,600 junior players participating in the 2024-25 season alone — a 232% rise in registered women footballers over the past year.

The U20 side has been in camp since December 2024, playing in the Pink Ladies Youth Cup in Turkiye and taking part in friendlies against Uzbekistan. In total, the team has trained together for 135 days in preparation for the qualifiers.

With the AFC U20 Women’s Asian Cup 2026 set to take place in Thailand next April, the AIFF plans to arrange extended training camps and high-quality international friendlies to ensure the team is ready to compete against Asia’s best.