2026 SAFF Club Championship
{{Short description|Association football tournament in South Asia}}
{{Use dmy dates|date= May 2023}}
{{Infobox international football competition
| tourney_name = SAFF Club Championship
| year = 2026
| dates = July {{cite web|title=SAFF Club Championship to comprise two teams from India|url=https://khelnow.com/football/2023-12-indian-football-saff-club-championship-two-teams-from-india|access-date=21 December 2023|archive-date=21 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231221090333/https://khelnow.com/football/2023-12-indian-football-saff-club-championship-two-teams-from-india|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=SAFF executive committee announce inaugural SAFF club championship|date=8 January 2025|url=https://khelnow.com/football/indian-football-saff-executive-committee-reveals-inaugural-saff-club-championship-202501|url-status=live}}
| num_teams = 8
| associations = 7
| venues =
| cities =
| champion =
| count =
| second =
| matches =
| goals =
| attendance =
| top_scorer =
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| nextseason =
}}
2026 SAFF Club Championship or 2026 South Asian Football League is the inaugural edition of the SAFF Club Championship, an international men's club football championship of South Asia organised by the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF), was stalled for over a decade due to lack of sponsors.{{cite web|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1751320/saff-announces-start-of-club-championship-from-next-year#:~:text=The%20new%20development%20is%20that,set%20for%20a%202024%20start.|date=6 May 2023|title=SAFF announces start of club championship from next year|work=www.dawn.com|access-date=7 May 2023|archive-date=7 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230507103901/https://www.dawn.com/news/1751320/saff-announces-start-of-club-championship-from-next-year#:~:text=The%20new%20development%20is%20that,set%20for%20a%202024%20start.|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.newagebd.net/article/201018/first-ever-saff-club-cship-likely-next-year|date=6 May 2023|title=First-ever SAFF Club C'ship likely next year|work=www.newagebd.net|access-date=7 May 2023|archive-date=6 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230506223516/https://www.newagebd.net/article/201018/first-ever-saff-club-cship-likely-next-year|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.thedailystar.net/sports/news/saff-club-cship-next-year-3313111|date=6 May 2023|title=SAFF Club C'ship from next year|work=www.thedailystar.net|access-date=7 May 2023|archive-date=6 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230506232500/https://www.thedailystar.net/sports/news/saff-club-cship-next-year-3313111|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.prothomalo.com/sports/football/x5ilnjbjn1|date=6 May 2023|title=সাফ ক্লাব চ্যাম্পিয়নশিপ হতে পারে আগামী বছর থেকে|language=bn|work=www.prothomalo.com|access-date=7 May 2023|archive-date=7 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230507122814/https://www.prothomalo.com/amp/story/sports/football/x5ilnjbjn1|url-status=live}}https://www.newagebd.net/post/others/254845/saff-2025-to-be-held-on-home-and-away-format
Format
Initially, a centralized venue was planned for the tournament. Eventually, a home-and-away format over six or seven months was finalized as the AIFF expressed reservations over allotting two weeks during the regular Indian football calendar. It was planned to be held in 2024 but postponed to 2026.{{cite news|url=https://www.news9live.com/sports/football/saff-mulls-home-and-away-system-for-its-inaugural-club-championship-2143586|date=17 May 2023|title=SAFF mulls home and away system for its inaugural club championship|language=en|work=www.news9live.com|access-date=24 May 2023|archive-date=24 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230524070252/https://www.news9live.com/sports/football/saff-mulls-home-and-away-system-for-its-inaugural-club-championship-2143586|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1751320|date=7 May 2023|title=SAFF announces start of club championship from next year|language=en|work=www.dawn.com|access-date=24 May 2023|archive-date=24 May 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230524070252/https://www.dawn.com/news/1751320|url-status=live}}
Association team allocation
A total of 8 teams from 7 SAFF member associations are set to participate in the 2026 SAFF Club Championship. The association ranking based on the AFC member assosciation coefficient rankings is used to determine the number of participating teams for each association. This will include two teams from India and one team from Maldives, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.{{Cite web |title=SAFF Club Championship to comprise two teams from India |url=https://khelnow.com/football/2023-12-indian-football-saff-club-championship-two-teams-from-india |access-date=2024-02-20 |website=Khel Now |language=en |archive-date=21 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231221090333/https://khelnow.com/football/2023-12-indian-football-saff-club-championship-two-teams-from-india |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Two spots for India in the inaugural SAFF Club Championship |date=7 December 2023 |url=https://thebridge.in/football/two-india-2024-saff-club-championship-45070 |publisher=thebridge.in |access-date=7 December 2023 |archive-date=7 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207180744/https://thebridge.in/football/two-india-2024-saff-club-championship-45070 |url-status=live }}
| class="wikitable" | |
| bgcolor=#f7f8ff colspan=2|Participation for 2026 SAFF Club Championship | |
|---|---|
| bgcolor=#90ee77 width=20| | Participating |
| bgcolor=#ffcccc width=20| | Not participating |
| class="wikitable" style="table-layout:fixed;width:40%;" |
| width="20%" |SAFF rank
! width="25%" |Member association !width=20%|Slots |
|---|
| bgcolor=#90ee77
| align="center" |1 |{{flagicon|IND}} India | align="center" |2 |
| bgcolor=#90ee77
| align="center" |2 |{{flagicon|BAN}} Bangladesh | align="center" |1 |
| bgcolor=#90ee77
| align="center" |3 |{{flagicon|Maldives }} Maldives | align="center" |1 |
| bgcolor=#90ee77
| align="center" |4 |{{flagicon|NEP}} Nepal | align="center" |1 |
| bgcolor=#90ee77
| align="center" |5 |{{flagicon|Sri Lanka}} Sri Lanka | align="center" |1 |
| bgcolor=#90ee77
| align="center" |6 |{{flagicon|Bhutan}} Bhutan | align="center" |1 |
| bgcolor=#90ee77
| align="center" |7 |{{flagicon|PAK}} Pakistan |align=center|1 |
| colspan=1 rowspan=1|Total
!colspan=1 rowspan=1|Participating associations: 7 !colspan=1 rowspan=1|8 |
Teams
The following teams will participate in the tournament:{{cite web |last1=Lakhani |first1=Faizan |title=Pakistani club to participate in SAFF's inaugural club championship |url=https://www.geosuper.tv/latest/30371-pakistani-club-to-participate-in-saffs-inaugural-club-championship |publisher=Geo Super |access-date=30 November 2023 |archive-date=28 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231128043920/https://www.geosuper.tv/latest/30371-pakistani-club-to-participate-in-saffs-inaugural-club-championship |url-status=live }}
| class="wikitable"
|+Participants |
| Team
!Qualifying method |
|---|
| {{fbaicon|IND}}
|2025–26 Indian Super League champions |
| {{fbaicon|IND}}
|2025–26 Indian Super League runners-up |
| {{fbaicon|BAN}}
|2025–26 Bangladesh Premier League champions |
| {{fbaicon|BHU}}
|2025 Bhutan Premier League champions |
| {{fbaicon|MDV}}
|2025 Dhivehi Premier League champions |
| {{fbaicon|NEP}}
|2026 Martyr's Memorial A-Division League champions |
| {{fbaicon|PAK}}
|2025–26 Pakistan Premier League champions |
| {{fbaicon|SRI}}
|2025–26 Sri Lanka Super League champions |
Bracket
The matches will be played in home and away knockout format.{{Cite web |title=@MarcusMargulhao: SAFF Club Championship will have eight teams, including two from India, the highest-ranked member association. |url=https://twitter.com/MarcusMergulhao/status/1732749583749701926 |access-date=2023-12-07 |website=X (formerly Twitter) |language=en |archive-date=7 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231207180801/https://twitter.com/MarcusMergulhao/status/1732749583749701926 |url-status=live }}
{{8TeamBracket-2Leg|seeds=no|game-score-width=jjj}}
Quarter-finals
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Semi-finals
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Final
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