The 2015 SAFF Championship (officially known as the SAFF Suzuki Cup 2015[1] for sponsorship reasons) was the 11th edition of the SAFF Championship, the biennial international men's football championship of South Asia organized by SAFF. It was held in India from 23 December 2015 to 3 January 2016.[2]
| 2015 SAFF Suzuki Cup | |
|---|---|
 2015 SAFF Championship official logo | |
| Tournament details | |
| Host country | India |
| Dates | 23 December 2015 – 3 January 2016 |
| Teams | 7 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  India (7th title) |
| Runners-up |  Afghanistan |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 12 |
| Goals scored | 44 (3.67 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Khaibar Amani (4 goals) |
| Best player(s) | Sunil Chhetri |
Heading into the tournament, Afghanistan were the defending champions of the tournament, with it also being the last time they can officially take part, as they have become members of the newly formed Central Asian Football Association.[3]
Originally scheduled to take place in July 2015, monsoon season and schedule congestion led to the tournament being postponed to late December.[2] The tournament saw no participation from Pakistan, who withdrew from the tournament in November 2015 due a dispute within the nation's football federation.[4]
India was chosen as the host nation on 10 September 2013 with the host venue to be decided between Delhi and Kerala.[5] In July 2015, it was announced that matches during the tournament would be held at the Trivandrum International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.[2] This is the third time in which India has hosted the tournament, when it was known as the Gold Cup in 1999 and under the current name in 2011.
Participating nations
editApart from hosts India, six other South Asian nations participated in the tournament, with Pakistan being the only nation not participating. There was no reason cited by the PFF but issues with the federation's elections have forced the courts to prohibit any activities.[6]
| Country | Appearance | Previous best performance | FIFA ranking Dec 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| India (Host) | 11th | Champions (1993, 1997, 1999, 2005, 2009, 2011) | 166 |
| Afghanistan | 8th | Champions (2013) | 150 |
 Bangladesh | 10th | Champions (2003) | 182 |
 Bhutan | 7th | Semi-finals (2008) | 188 |
 Maldives | 9th | Champions (2008) | 160 |
 Nepal | 11th | Third-place (1993) | 192 |
 Sri Lanka | 11th | Champions (1995) | 194 |
Venue
editOn 2 July 2015, it was announced that the matches during the tournament would take place at the newly constructed Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.[2][7]
| Thiruvananthapuram | |
|---|---|
| Trivandrum International Stadium | |
| Capacity: 55,000 | |
 |
Squads
editBroadcasting
editThe tournament was broadcast live in India on STAR Sports 4, Kantipur Television Network in Nepal, Lemar TV and Tolo TV in Afghanistan. Gazi TV in Bangladesh, Bhutan Broadcasting Service in Bhutan and Television Maldives in Maldives. Every match was broadcast live on YouTube.[8]
Group stage
editAll times are local, IST (UTC+5:30).
Group A
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | India (H) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 6 | Qualified for semi-finals |
| 2 | Sri Lanka | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 3 | |
| 3 | Nepal | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 0 |
| India | 4–1 | Nepal |
|---|---|---|
Borges  26'Chhetri 68'Chhangte 81', 90' | Report | Magar 3' |
Group B
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Afghanistan | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | +10 | 9 | Qualified for semi-finals |
| 2 | Maldives | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 6 | +1 | 6 | |
| 3 | Bangladesh | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 7 | −3 | 3 | |
| 4 | Bhutan | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 9 | −8 | 0 |
| Afghanistan | 4–0 | Bangladesh |
|---|---|---|
| Saighani 30' Shayesteh 32'Amiri 40'Amani 69' | Report |
| Bhutan | 0–3 | Afghanistan |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Amani 14', 51' Saighani 42' |
| Bhutan | 0–3 | Bangladesh |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Barman 8' Rony 24' (pen.), 67' |
Knockout phase
editBracket
edit| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 31 Dec – Thiruvananthapuram | ||||||
| India | 3 | |||||
| 3 Jan – Thiruvananthapuram | ||||||
| Maldives | 2 | |||||
| India (a.e.t.) | 2 | |||||
| 31 Dec – Thiruvananthapuram | ||||||
| Afghanistan | 1 | |||||
| Afghanistan | 5 | |||||
| Sri Lanka | 0 | |||||
Semi-finals
edit| India | 3–2 | Maldives |
|---|---|---|
| Chhetri 25' Lalpekhlua 34', 66' | Report | Nashid 45+2' Amdhan Ali 75' |
Final
edit| India | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Afghanistan |
|---|---|---|
| Lalpekhlua 72' Chhetri 101' | Report | Amiri 70' |
Champion
edit| SAFF Championship 2015 |
|---|
 India Seventh title |
Awards
editThe following awards were given for the 2015 SAFF Championship.[9]
| Fair Play Award | Most Valuable Player | Golden Boot Award | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maldives | Sunil Chhetri | Khaibar Amani |
Goalscorers
edit- 4 goals
- 3 goals
- 2 goals
- 1 goal
Team statistics
editThis table shows all team performance.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Final | |||||||||
| 1 | India | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 4 | +7 | 12 |
| 2 | Afghanistan | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 17 | 3 | +14 | 12 |
| Semi-finals | |||||||||
| 3 | Maldives | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 6 |
| 4 | Sri Lanka | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 7 | -6 | 3 |
| Eliminated in the group stage | |||||||||
| 5 | Bangladesh | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 7 | −3 | 3 |
| 6 | Nepal | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | −4 | 0 |
| 7 | Bhutan | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 9 | −8 | 0 |
Source:[10]
Controversies
editDuring the first match of the tournament, both Sri Lanka and Nepal were wearing the same dark red jersey in the first half before Nepal changed into their blue second-kit for the second half.
Sponsorship
editOn 14 September 2015 it was announced that Suzuki would be the title sponsor of the SAFF Championship for 2015.[1]