New Delhi, March 24: The Indian senior women's team will participate in the 2026 FIFA Series in Nairobi, Kenya, during the April FIFA International Women's Match Window.
The "Blue Tigresses" will face the host, Kenya, in the semi-final on April 11 at 20:30 IST, while Australia and Malawi will play the other semi-final earlier that day at 16:30 IST. The semi-final winners and losers will clash in the final and the third-place play-off, respectively, on April 15. Any match that ends in a draw will go straight to a penalty shootout, with no extra time. All matches will take place at the Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi.
Among the four participants, India are the second-highest ranked team in the FIFA world rankings, ranked 67th. Australia is ranked 15th, while Kenya and Malawi, the two African teams, are ranked 133rd and 153rd, respectively.
Launched in 2024, the FIFA Series is an international friendly tournament featuring national teams from different confederations. The purpose of the FIFA Series is to facilitate meaningful friendly matches between national teams from different confederations that would not normally compete against one another. According to FIFA, the ultimate objective of the FIFA Series is to allow more international football interaction, making a concrete contribution to global football development.
Earlier this month, India were eliminated from the 2026 AFC Women's Asian Cup after suffering a 1-3 defeat against Chinese Taipei in their last Group C match at the Western Sydney Stadium in Sydney, Australia. Chinese Taipei led 2-1 at half-time.
2026 FIFA Series Kenya Match Schedule:
Semi-final 1 — 16:30 IST, April 11: Australia vs Malawi
Semi-final 2 — 20:30 IST, April 11: Kenya vs India
Third-place match — 16:30 IST, April 15
Final — 20:30 IST, April 15
Venue: Nyayo National Stadium, Nairobi, Kenya.
