The Football Association of Maldives (FAM) has extended the deadline for participation in the “Atoll Championship,” which is part of the newly structured Maldivian football league system. The Maldives has been divided into four regions, with the “Atoll Championship” football tournament scheduled to begin this year in three regions corresponding to the atolls. FAM states that many islands have registered for the tournament after the opportunity was opened for interested islands to participate.
According to an announcement by FAM, the initial registration was only open to teams registered by island councils or teams endorsed by island councils. However, some islands’ clubs have been requesting to participate in the tournament because their island councils are unwilling to participate or endorse a team.
Consequently, FAM has extended the opportunity to participate in this tournament until September 11, 2025. Therefore, FAM requests that islands interested in participating in the “Atoll Championship” football tournament complete the application form and submit it via email to [email protected]. FAM has also established a priority order for club participation in the tournament.
The priority order is as follows:
- Clubs registered with the Commissioner of Sports by the participating island’s council.
- Clubs affiliated with the participating island and endorsed by the island council.
- Clubs affiliated with the participating island (If more than one club is registered, FAM will determine the representing club through a draw).
The Atoll Championship football tournament is scheduled to begin in October. The Atoll and Zone football tournaments were previously very popular events in the Maldives. However, these tournaments were discontinued recently due to numerous financial issues. These issues included FAM’s failure to pay debts owed to hotels, cafes, and guesthouses in the islands where tournaments were held.
In the Atoll Championship, the champion teams from the North League, Central League, and South League, along with the champion of the Male’ League, will compete in the Premier League qualifiers, which will include six teams. The top 4 teams from this qualification will qualify for the 2026/2027 season league.
