The Football Association of Maldives (FAM) has opened registration for the Atoll Championship 2025/2026, which will be held under the newly structured Maldivian football league system. According to the announcement published in the gazette by FAM, under the new structure of the Maldivian football league, the country has been divided into four regions. The Atoll Championship football tournament, scheduled to begin this year in three regions comprising various atolls, is now open for interested islands to participate. Interested parties are requeste are requested to complete the registration form and submit it to FAM’s email ([email protected]) before September 1st.
According to the announcement, the North Region matches will take place from October 1st to November 30th. The Central Region matches will run from November 15th to December 30th, while the South Region matches will be held from December 1st to February 15th of next year. However, FAM has stated that these dates may be subject to change depending on the number of teams participating.
Under the previously established rules by FAM, this season will feature 90 matches played over two rounds. While the top six teams of the Dhivehi Premier League are guaranteed spots in next year’s league, the two lowest-scoring teams will be relegated to the Male’ League, which will be held as a regional league starting this year, replacing the former second division. The seventh and eighth-placed teams will have to play in the qualification round of the Male’ League.
According to the Premier League rules, the seventh and eighth-placed teams, along with the champions of the North League, Central League, South League, and Male’ League, totaling six teams, will compete in the Premier League qualifiers. The top four teams from this qualification will advance to the 2026/2027 season league.
The Atoll and Zone football tournaments were once very popular events in the Maldives. However, these tournaments have not been held recently due to numerous financial issues. These include FAM’s failure to pay dues to hotels, cafes, and guesthouses in the islands where the tournaments were held.
One of the major issues that escalated before FAM’s most recent election was the denial of voting rights to teams from the atolls. However, FIFA officials who visited the Maldives instructed to postpone this decision.
