The 2024 edition of the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Cup Under-20 Men’s Football Tournament will be hosted by Football Sri Lanka (FSL) in Sri Lanka. FSL will organize the tournament in August at either the Sugathadasa Stadium or the Racecourse Grounds in Colombo. The decision has been made by the FSL Executive Committee and has been submitted to the SAFF Executive Committee for approval. The SAFF authorities will finalize the approval during the FIFA Club World Cup Football Tournament, which will take place in Saudi Arabia in December. FSL President Umar Jaswar informed the Daily Mirror about this development. Several countries, including India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Maldives, Pakistan, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka, have already expressed their interest in participating in the tournament. FSL has also planned to start the league matches in January 2024 to assess the players’ performances ahead of the tournament. As part of the preparations, FSL intends to establish a youth national pool consisting of 30 or 35 players and commence training immediately. Additionally, Sri Lanka is also planning to host the Second Four-Nation Invitational Football Tournament. President Jaswar mentioned that FSL will receive a funding of US $2 million from FIFA and AFC for the 2024 Football Development Programme.
