Indian Football: Santosh Trophy final round postponed amidst COVID-19 scare

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has postponed the final round of the 75th Santosh Trophy National Football Championship, which was scheduled to be held at Malappuram in Kerala from February 20 to March 6.

"In view of the rise in COVID-19 positive cases, the AIFF in consultation with the Government of Kerala has decided to defer the competition schedule," said Kushal Das, the national federation's general secretary, in a letter to the 10 teams, including host Kerala, which have qualified for the final phase.

Earlier ten qualified teams were divided into two groups. Group A consists of Bengal, Kerala, Punjab, Meghalaya and Rajasthan. Group B will see the likes of defending champions Services, Manipur, Karnataka, Odisha and Gujarat.

A review of the situation will be undertaken in the third week of February and new dates announced after that.