India drawn with Malaysia, Syria and Iraq in AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup 2027 Qualifiers

India have been drawn alongside hosts Malaysia, Syria and Iraq in Group E of the AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup China 2027 Qualifiers.

The Young Tigresses head into the qualifiers after a historic run at the AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup 2026, where they reached the quarter-finals for the first time. India had booked their place in the continental tournament on merit after a 2-1 comeback victory over Uzbekistan in the qualifiers, marking their maiden qualification through the qualification pathway.

Malaysia will host the Group E qualifiers from October 5 to 11, 2026. India will begin their campaign against Iraq before taking on Syria and hosts Malaysia.

Building on a historic campaign

India heads into the qualifiers following a commendable performance at the 2026 AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup in May, where they reached the quarter-finals for the first time before losing 0-3 to hosts China.

The campaign also created history, with India's senior, U20 and U17 women's national teams all qualifying for their respective AFC Asian Cups simultaneously for the first time.

The Young Tigresses also became the first Indian U-17 women's team to reach the knockout stage of the continental tournament.

Qualification format

A total of 30 teams have been divided into eight groups, six groups of four and two groups of three, based on the seedings from the previous three editions of the tournament. The qualifiers will be played in a centralised single round-robin format from October 5 to 11.

The eight group winners will qualify for the AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup China 2027, where they will join the four teams that qualified automatically by virtue of finishing in the top four at the 2026 edition, defending champions DPR Korea, runners-up Japan, and semi-finalists Australia and hosts China PR.

The tournament will be held in Suzhou, China, from March 31 to April 17, 2027. The four semi-finalists at the AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup will qualify for the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup 2027.

AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup China 2027 Qualifiers draw

Group A: Korea Republic, Jordan, Tajikistan (H), United Arab Emirates

Group B: Indonesia, Singapore (H), Saudi Arabia, Bahrain

Group C: Chinese Taipei, Islamic Republic of Iran, Laos (H), Cambodia

Group D: Vietnam (H), Kyrgyz Republic, Northern Mariana Islands, Palestine

Group E: India, Malaysia (H), Syria, Iraq

Group F: Thailand (H), Lebanon, Macau, Bhutan

Group G: Myanmar (H), Hong Kong, Guam

Group H: Philippines, Bangladesh, Uzbekistan (H)

India's schedule

Matchday 1: India vs Iraq

Matchday 2: Syria vs India

Matchday 3: India vs Malaysia

Host: Malaysia

Dates: October 5–11, 2026