India national football team records and statistics

Records of India national football team From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The following is a list of the India national football team's competitive records and statistics.

The India national football team represents India in international football and is controlled by the All India Football Federation. Under the global jurisdiction of FIFA and governed in Asia by the AFC, the team is also part of the South Asian Football Federation. The team, which was once considered one of the best teams in Asia, had its golden era during the 1950s and early 1960s. During this period, under the coaching of Syed Abdul Rahim, India won gold during the 1951 and 1962 Asian Games, won silver medal in 1964 AFC Asia Cup as runners up, while finishing fourth during the 1956 Summer Olympics. India has never participated in the FIFA World Cup, although the team did qualify by default for the 1950 World Cup after all the other nations in their qualification group withdrew. However India withdrew prior to the beginning of the tournament.

India has never participated in a FIFA World Cup.[1] After gaining independence in 1947, India managed to qualify for the World Cup held in 1950. This was due to Myanmar, Indonesia, and the Philippines withdrawing from qualification.[1] However, prior to the start of the tournament, India themselves withdrew due to the expenses required in getting the team to Brazil.[1] Other reasons cited for why India withdrew include FIFA not allowing Indian players to play in the tournament barefoot and the All India Football Federation not considering the World Cup an important tournament compared to the Olympics.[1]

After withdrawing from the 1950 FIFA World Cup, India didn't enter the qualifying rounds of the tournament between 1954 and 1982.[2] Since the 1986 qualifiers, with the exception of the 1990 edition of the tournament, the team started to participate in qualifiers but have yet to qualify for the tournament again.[2]

Individual records

Player records

See also: List of India international footballers
As of 1 May 2026[3]
Players in bold are still active with India.
Sunil Chhetri is India's top goalscorer and their most capped player.
More information Rank., Player ...
Players with most international caps for India
Rank. Player Caps Goals Career Ref.
1. Sunil Chhetri 157 95 2005−2025 [4][5]
2. Bhaichung Bhutia 84 27 1995−2011 [6][7][8]
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu 84 0 2011−present [9]
3. Shabbir Ali 72 6 1974−1984 [10]
Climax Lawrence 72 3 2003−2011 [11]
I. M. Vijayan 72 30[a] 1992−2004[b] [15]
Sandesh Jhingan 72 6 2015−present [16]
4. Gouramangi Singh 71 6 2006−2013 [17]
5. Shabbir Ali 69[c] 16 1974−1984 [19]
6. Mahesh Gawli 68 1 1999−2011 [20]
Subrata Pal 68 0 2007−2017 [21]
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More information Rank., Player ...
Players with most international goals scored for India
Rank. Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1. Sunil Chhetri 95 (list) 157 0.61 2005–2025
2. I. M. Vijayan 30 (list) 72[d] 0.42 1992−2004[e]
3. Bhaichung Bhutia 27 (list) 84 0.32 1995−2011
4. Jeje Lalpekhlua 23 (list) 56 0.41 2011−2019
5. Shabbir Ali 16 (list) 69[f] 0.23 1974−1984
6. Magan Singh Rajvi 15 (list) 36[g] 0.42 1969−1974
P. K. Banerjee 15 (list) 50[h] 0.3 1955−1966
7. Chuni Goswami 12 (list) 37 0.32 1958−1964
Tulsidas Balaram 12 (list) 33 0.36 1956−1962[i]
8. Mohammed Habib 11 (list) 35 0.31 1969−1974
Jo Paul Ancheri 11 (list) 41 0.27 1994−2004
9. Neville D'Souza 10 (list) 13[j] 0.77 1953−1956
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Manager records

See also: List of India national football team managers
  • (since 2002)
More information Manager, Period ...
Manager Period Record
MatchesWonDrawLostWin %
England Stephen Constantine2002–051845922.22%
India Sukhwinder Singh2005511320.00%
India Syed Nayeemuddin2005–06741257.14%
England Bob Houghton2006–11441462431.81%
India Armando Colaco2011 (Interim)50230.00%
India Savio Medeira2011–121352638.46%
Netherlands Wim Koevermans2012–142075835.00%
England Stephen Constantine2015–19422361354.76%
Croatia Igor Štimac2019–20243815111239.47%
Spain Manolo Márquez2024–2025814312.50%
India Khalid Jamil2025–823325.00%
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Competition records

FIFA World Cup

Main article: India at the FIFA World Cup qualification

India has never played in finals of a FIFA World Cup.[1] The closest they came to qualify was back in 2002 when they were a point away from progressing in to the final round.

More information [[FIFA World Cup|FIFA World Cup]] record, [[FIFA World Cup qualification|FIFA World Cup qualification]] record ...
[[FIFA World Cup|FIFA World Cup]] record [[FIFA World Cup qualification|FIFA World Cup qualification]] record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Did not enter Did not enter
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950 Withdrew Qualified
Switzerland 1954 Denied by FIFA None
Sweden 1958
to
Spain 1982		 Did not enter Did not enter
Mexico 1986 Did not qualify 6 2 3 1 7 6
Italy 1990 Withdrew from qualification
United States 1994 8 1 1 6 8 22
France 1998 3 1 1 1 3 7
South Korea Japan 2002 6 3 2 1 11 5
Germany 2006 6 1 1 4 2 18
South Africa 2010 2 0 1 1 3 6
Brazil 2014 2 0 1 1 2 5
Russia 2018 10 2 1 7 7 18
Qatar 2022 8 1 4 3 6 7
Canada Mexico United States 2026 6 1 2 3 3 7
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total - - - - - - - - 51 11 15 25 49 94
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AFC Asian Cup

Main article: India at the AFC Asian Cup
More information [[AFC Asian Cup|AFC Asian Cup]] record, [[AFC Asian Cup qualification|AFC Asian Cup]] record ...
[[AFC Asian Cup|AFC Asian Cup]] record [[AFC Asian Cup qualification|AFC Asian Cup]] record
Host/Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
Hong Kong 1956Did not enterDid not enter
South Korea 1960Did not qualify620479
Israel 1964Runners-up2nd320153SquadBye
Iran 1968Did not qualify301226
Thailand 1972
to
Kuwait 1980		Did not enterDid not enter
Singapore 1984Group stage10th401307Squad430182
Qatar 1988
to
Indonesia Malaysia Thailand Vietnam 2007		Did not qualify 2124151757
Qatar 2011Group stage16th3003313Squad2008 AFC Challenge Cup winners
Australia 2015Did not qualifyFailed to win 2012 & Did not qualify for 2014 AFC Challenge Cup
United Arab Emirates 2019Group stage17th310244Squad188282524
Qatar 2023Group stage24th300306Squad11443148
Saudi Arabia 2027 To be determined 11 1 4 6 5 12
TotalsRunners-up5/1716311212337420153978118
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Summer Olympics

See also: India at the Olympics
More information [[Summer Olympics|Summer Olympics]] record, [[Summer Olympics|Summer Olympics]] qualification record ...
[[Summer Olympics|Summer Olympics]] record [[Summer Olympics|Summer Olympics]] qualification record
Host/Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
United Kingdom 1908–Germany 1936 Did not enter Did not enter
United Kingdom 1948 Round 1 11th 1 0 0 1 1 2 Squad Qualified automatically
Finland 1952 Preliminaries 25th 1 0 0 1 1 10 Squad
Australia 1956 Semi-finals 4th 3 1 0 2 5 9 Squad Bye
Italy 1960 Round 1 13th 3 0 1 2 3 6 Squad 4 4 0 0 13 4
Japan 1964–South Korea 1988 Did not qualify 23 9 1 13 32 38
TotalSemi-finals4 / 17811610272391134542
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Asian Games

More information [[Asian Games|Asian Games]] record, Host/Year ...
[[Asian Games|Asian Games]] record
Host/Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
India 1951 Champions 1st 3 3 0 0 7 0 Squad
Philippines 1954 Round 1 8th 2 1 0 1 3 6 Squad
Japan 1958 Semi-finals 4th 5 2 0 3 12 13 Squad
Indonesia 1962 Champions 1st 5 4 0 1 11 6 Squad
Thailand 1966 Round 1 8th 3 1 0 2 4 7 Squad
Thailand 1970 Third place 3rd 6 3 1 2 8 5 Squad
Iran 1974 Round 1 13th 3 0 0 3 2 14 Squad
Thailand 1978 Round 2 8th 5 1 0 4 5 13 Squad
India 1982 Quarter-finals 6th 4 2 1 1 5 3 Squad
South Korea 1986 Round 1 16th 3 0 0 3 1 8 Squad
China 1990 Did not enter
Japan 1994
Thailand 1998 Round 2 16th 5 1 0 4 3 8 Squad
Total2 Titles11 / 1344182246183
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AFC Challenge Cup

More information [[AFC Challenge Cup|AFC Challenge Cup]] record, AFC Challenge Cup Qualification record ...
[[AFC Challenge Cup|AFC Challenge Cup]] record AFC Challenge Cup Qualification record
Host/Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
Bangladesh 2006Quarter-final[k]8412134SquadQualified automatically
India 2008Champions1st541093SquadQualified as hosts
Sri Lanka 2010Group Stage[l]8300316SquadQualified automatically
Nepal 2012Group stage8th300308Squad321072
Maldives 2014Did not qualify320162
Totals[m]1 Title2/584139116411134
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SAFF Championship

More information [[SAFF Championship|SAFF Championship]] record, Host/Year ...
[[SAFF Championship|SAFF Championship]] record
Host/Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
Pakistan 1993Champions1st321041
Sri Lanka 1995Runners-up2nd302123
Nepal 1997Champions1st4310123
India 1999Champions1st431061
Bangladesh 2003Third place3rd521285
Pakistan 2005Champions1st541092
Maldives Sri Lanka 2008Runners-up2nd540193
India 2011Champions1st5410162
Nepal 2013Runners-up2nd521245
India 2015Champions1st4400114
Bangladesh 2018Runners-up2nd430183
Maldives 2021Champions1st532082
India 2023Champions1st523082
Total8 Titles13/13573614710536
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CAFA Nations Cup

More information [[CAFA Nations Cup|CAFA Nations Cup]] record, Host/Year ...
[[CAFA Nations Cup|CAFA Nations Cup]] record
Host/Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
Tajikistan Uzbekistan 2025Third place3rd412135
TotalThird place1/1412135
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South Asian Games

More information [[Football at the South Asian Games|South Asian Games]] record, Host/Year ...
[[Football at the South Asian Games|South Asian Games]] record
Host/Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
Nepal 1984 Did not enter
Bangladesh 1985 Champions[n] 1st 3 2 1 0 6 1
India 1987 Champions 1st 3 2 1 0 6 0
Pakistan 1989 Third place 3rd 3 2 1 0 5 3
Sri Lanka 1991 Group stage 6th 2 0 1 1 1 2
Bangladesh 1993 Runners-up 2nd 3 1 2 0 6 4
India 1995 Champions 1st 3 3 0 0 5 0
Nepal 1999 Third place[o] 3rd 5 4 0 1 15 4
Totals[p]3 Titles7/82012623814
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Other tournaments

Overall competitive record

As of 31 March 2026 (Excluding friendlies & minor tournaments)
More information Competition, Pld ...
Competition Pld W D L GF GA GD Win%
FIFA World Cup qualifier 5712172852101−49021.05
AFC Asian Cup 1631121233−21018.75
AFC Asian Cup qualifier[q] 7521153980119−39028.00
Summer Olympics 81161027−17012.50
Summer Olympics qualifier 2391134542+3039.13
Asian Games[r] 44182246183−22040.91
SAFF Championship 573614710536+69063.16
AFC Challenge Cup[s] 8413911−2050.00
AFC Challenge Cup qualifier 6411134+9066.67
South Asian Games[t] 2012623814+24060.00
Total[u] 31412069125425469−44038.22
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Head-to-head record

The results only include matches considered as FIFA A matches (including Olympic finals and Qualifier matches). Other matches played against Club teams, Underage sides or B teams are not included here. Updated as of 31 March 2026 (vs  Hong Kong).[44][45][46][v]

  Positive Record   Neutral Record   Negative Record

More information Opponents, Pld ...
Opponents Pld W D L GF GA GD Win % First meeting Last meeting Confederations
 Afghanistan157622612+1446.67 1951 2025 AFC
 Argentina100101-10 1984 CONMEBOL
 Australia93152727033.33 1938 2024 AFC
 Azerbaijan100103-30 2012 UEFA
 Bahrain7016416-120 1982 2022 AFC
 Bangladesh29121343821+1741.38 1978 2025 AFC
 Belarus100103-30 2022 UEFA
 Bhutan3300101+9100 2005 2011 AFC
 Brunei220060+6100 2001 2001 AFC
 Bulgaria100103-30 1956 UEFA
 Cambodia6501195+1483.33 1964 2022 AFC
 Cameroon403156-10 1993 2012 CAF
 China14059625-190 1956 2018 AFC
 Chinese Taipei8521175+1262.5 1966 2018 AFC
 Curaçao100113-20 2019 CONCACAF
 Fiji200213-20 2005 2005 OFC
 Finland201102-20 1993 1993 UEFA
 France201123-10 1948 1960 UEFA
 Ghana100101-10 1982 CAF
 Guam320162+466.67 2013 2015 AFC
 Guyana100112-10 2011 CONCACAF
 Hong Kong189453822+1650 1958 2026 AFC
 Hungary200224-20 1960 1991 UEFA
 Iceland100103-30 2001 UEFA
 Indonesia2210393437-345.45 1951 2004 AFC
 Iran12219728-2116.67 1951 2025 AFC
 Iraq7034413-90 1974 2023 AFC
 Israel400428-60 1959 1964 UEFA
 Jamaica201103-30 2002 2002 CONCACAF
 Japan1330101037-2723.08 1954 2006 AFC
 Jordan200214-30 2018 2022 AFC
 Kenya220050+5100 2018 2018 CAF
 Kuwait7232819-1128.57 1978 2024 AFC
 Kyrgyzstan540193+680 2007 2023 AFC
 Laos220071+6100 2016 2016 AFC
 Lebanon9144812-411.11 1993 2023 AFC
 Macau220061+5100 2017 2017 AFC
 Malaysia[note 1]2788113953-1429.63 1959 2024 AFC
 Maldives1813233914+2572.22 1987 2025 AFC
 Mauritius211021+150 2017 2024 CAF
 Mongolia110020+2100 2023 AFC
 Morocco100101-10 1985 CAF
 Myanmar2210393743-645.45 1952 2023 AFC
 Namibia110020+2100 2010 CAF
   Nepal231751429+3373.91 1985 2023 AFC
 New Zealand201112-10 1981 2018 OFC
 North Korea8017623-170 1974 2019 AFC
 Oman11047724-170 1994 2025 AFC
 Pakistan2616734119+2261.54 1952 2023 AFC
 Palestine200247-30 2013 2014 AFC
 Peru200214-30 1960 1986 CONMEBOL
 Philippines421184+450 1971 2013 AFC
 Poland100112-10 1984 UEFA
 Puerto Rico110041+3100 2016 CONCACAF
 Qatar5014112-110 1996 2024 AFC
 Russia[note 2]2002116-150 1955 1971 UEFA
 Saint Kitts and Nevis10101100 2017 CONCACAF
 Saudi Arabia5005218-160 1982 2006 AFC
 Serbia[note 3]2002214-120 1952 1956 UEFA
 Singapore175391622-629.41 1959 2025 AFC
 South Korea[w]2042141348-3520 1958 2011 AFC
 Sri Lanka2215525016+3468.18 1952 2021 AFC
 Suriname2002310-70 1984 1984 CONCACAF
 Syria8224711-425 2007 2024 AFC
 Tajikistan6213912-333.33 2008 2025 AFC
 Thailand2376102836-830.43 1962 2025 AFC
 Trinidad and Tobago4103310-725 1984 2011 CONCACAF
 Tunisia10102200 1960 CAF
 Turkmenistan511379-220 1998 2016 AFC
 United Arab Emirates132110732-2515.38 1981 2021 AFC
 Uruguay100113-20 1982 CONMEBOL
 Uzbekistan6015314-110 1998 2024 AFC
 Vanuatu110010+1100 2023 OFC
 Vietnam[note 4]168442419+550 1959 2024 AFC
 Yemen[note 5]91261220-811.11 1984 2010 AFC
 Zambia100105-50 2011 CAF
Total (76)544196116232739869−13036.031938 (debut)2026 (last played) FIFA
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Sources:

Notes:

  1. [a]
    The old footages of the match shows that Vijayan scored India's second goal in the South Asian Games final against Nepal which ended in a 2–2 draw.[12][13] However RSSSF doesn't include this goal in their statistics.
  2. [b]
    Bhutan Football Federation became a member of FIFA only in the year 2000.[14] so, the match against Bhutan at the 1999 South Asian Games is not considered a FIFA 'A' international match by FIFA.
  3. [c]
    RSSSF includes the non Full A matches played against Algerian Youth team, South Korean XI and Pakistan XI in their list, but it is excluded here.[18]
  4. [d]
    The old footages of the match shows that Vijayan scored India's second goal in the South Asian Games final against Nepal which ended in a 2–2 draw.[22][23] However RSSSF doesn't include this goal in their statistics.
  5. [e]
    Bhutan Football Federation became a member of FIFA only in the year 2000.[24] so, the match against Bhutan at the 1999 South Asian Games is not considered a FIFA 'A' international match by FIFA.
  6. [f]
    RSSSF includes the non Full A matches played against Algerian Youth team, South Korean XI and Pakistan XI in their list, but it is excluded here.[25]
  7. [g]
    RSSSF credits the first goal scored by India in their 3–4 defeat to Burma in 1972 Olympic Qualifier to Rajvi.[26][27] However the News articles credit the goal to Gurdev Singh.[28]
  8. [h]
    RSSSF includes the matches played against South Korean XI in 1964 and Japan XI in 1965 on their list.[29][30] But it is considered unofficial by other sources.[31][32][33]
  9. [i]
    RSSSF mistakenly includes a goal from the match against Afghanistan in 1959 and doesn't count the brace Tulsidas scored against Tunisia in a 2–2 draw.[34][35][36]
  10. [j]
    According to RSSSF Neville played in 1954 Asian Games.[37] But other sources suggests that he was not part of the squad.[38] Hence the goal and matches at the 1954 Games are not included here.[39]
  11. [k]
    India actually played with U-20 team so the matches involving them are not considered as full-A internationals.
  12. [l]
    India actually played with U-23 team so the matches involving them are not considered as full-A internationals.
  13. [m]
    Only full-A internationals are considered.
  14. [n]
    The match against Bhutan is not considered as full-A international.
  15. [o]
    The match against Bhutan is not considered as full-A international.
  16. [p]
    Only full-A internationals are considered.
  17. [q]
    From 2014 onwards the first and second round of FIFA World Cup qualifiers are also considered part of Asian Cup qualifiers.
  18. [r]
    The matches against Japan U-20 is not considered as full-A international by some sources. But it is considered by some other sources.
  19. [s]
    India actually played with U-20 team in 2006 and U-23 team in 2010, so the matches involving them are not considered as full-A internationals & are not included here.
  20. [t]
    The two matches against Bhutan is not considered as full-A international as they were not a FIFA member until 2000.
  21. [u]
    Only full-A internationals are considered.
  22. [v]
    Although there is some conjecture regarding the status of several games (especially pre-1992 matches), the table includes all fixtures recognised by FIFA as "A" internationals and as such is used to recognise caps, goal scorers, captaincy records, etc. Several other sources may differ from the table given below. This following table is based on RSSSF and FIFA sources.[47][48]
  23. [w]
    A match against South Korea which India won 1-0 in 1977 is considered as an international A match for India by some sources.

Other records

Honours

More information Event, Gold ...
Event Gold Silver Bronze Total
AFC Asian Cup0101
Asian Games2013
Afro-Asian Games0101
AFC Challenge Cup1001
CAFA Nations Cup 0011
SAFF Championship84113
South Asian Games3126
Colombo Cup4004
Nehru Cup3003
Intercontinental Cup2002
Tri-Nation Series2002
Pesta Sukan Cup1001
Merdeka Tournament0246
ANFA Cup0101
VFF Cup0101
Afghanistan Republic Day Festival Cup0022
King's Cup0022
Total26111350
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See also

Notes

  1. [1]
    Includes matches against  Malaya
  2. [2]
    Includes matches against  Soviet Union
  3. [3]
    Includes matches against  Yugoslavia
  4. [4]
    Includes matches against  South Vietnam
  5. [5]
    Includes matches against  North Yemen

References

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