2023 Merdeka Tournament
International football competition
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The 2023 Merdeka Tournament was the 42nd edition of the tournament which was organised by the Football Association of Malaysia. The tournament, which featured three participants, took place between 13 and 17 October.
| Pesta Bola Merdeka | |
|---|---|
| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Malaysia |
| Dates | 13–17 October 2023 |
| Teams | 3 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Tajikistan (1st title) |
| Runners-up |  Malaysia |
| Third place |  India |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 2 |
| Goals scored | 8 (4 per match) |
| Attendance | 82,708 (41,354 per match) |
← 2013 2024 → | |
Tajikistan emerged as the champion of the tournament for their first title after beating host Malaysia 2–0 at the final.[1][2]
Participating nations
The teams were announced by the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) in March 2023.[3][4] The draw took place on 8 August 2023.[5] However, Lebanon later pulled out of the tournament due to the 2026 World Cup qualifying draws putting them in the same group with Palestine, later replaced by Tajikistan.[6][7]
Due to Israel's genocide of Palestinians, Palestine decided to withdraw three days prior to the tournament.[8]
The following are the FIFA Rankings of the participating national teams, as of 21 September 2023.[9]
Palestine (97) (withdrew)
Lebanon (101) (withdrew)
India (102)
Tajikistan (110)
Malaysia (134)
Venue
All matches were played at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[4][10]
| Kuala Lumpur | |
|---|---|
| Bukit Jalil National Stadium | |
| Capacity: 87,411 | |
Matches
Match rule
- 90 minutes.
- Penalty shoot-out after a draw in 90 minutes.
- Maximum of five substitutions.
Bracket
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 13 October – Bukit Jalil National Stadium | ||||||
| Malaysia | 4 | |||||
| 17 October – Bukit Jalil National Stadium | ||||||
| India | 2 | |||||
| Malaysia | 0 | |||||
| 13 October – Bukit Jalil National Stadium | ||||||
| Tajikistan | 2 | |||||
 Palestine | ||||||
| Tajikistan | w/o | |||||
Semi-finals
| Malaysia | 4–2 | India |
|---|---|---|
|
Report (Olympics.com) Report (FAM) |
Final
Winners
| 2023 Merdeka Tournament Winner |
|---|
 Tajikistan 1st title |
Goalscorers
There were 8 goals scored in 2 matches, for an average of 4 goals per match.
1 goal