The Maldives has become the only country to participate in the Tri-Nations football tournament scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka this September.
According to some Sri Lankan newspapers, the Maldives is certainly the only country participating in the tournament as Bhutan is unable to join. This tournament was organized after the SAFF Championship, initially planned to be held in Sri Lanka this year, was postponed to next year, and the South Asian Football Federation couldn’t guarantee that the tournament would be held in Sri Lanka.
Initially, the tournament was planned to include four SAARC countries. However, as this period coincides with crucial league matches for India, Bangladesh, and Nepal, these countries were not interested in participating. This is also due to their scheduled World Cup qualifying matches.
Sri Lankan newspapers suggest that with no other country able to participate, the most likely scenario is to arrange friendly matches between the Maldives and Sri Lanka. The Sri Lanka Football Federation is considering organizing two friendly matches between September 1 and 9.
The Maldives and Sri Lanka are highly competitive in football. In their last encounter, the Maldives won 1-0.
The SAFF Championship couldn’t be held in Sri Lanka because the main sponsors insisted on holding the tournament on a home and away basis. Additionally, countries like India started claiming that Sri Lanka lacks adequate facilities to host a tournament involving seven SAARC countries.
