India national football team will take on world No44 and FIFA World Cup 2026 participant Panama in an international friendly in Bengaluru on Friday.
Updated: September 24, 2026, 4:33 PM IST
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Head coach Khalid Jamil with Indian team at a training session in Bengaluru(Photo: PTI)
India vs Panama 2026 football: India football team are bracing themselves for the biggest challenge in the current ‘international friendly’ window as get ready to face three teams which competed at the FIFA World Cup 2026 – Panama, Brazil and UruguayOut of these three sides, Panama are the lowest ranked at world No44 and will take on Gurpreet Singh Sandhu’s Indian side at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Friday.
Panama were in Group L in the FIFA World Cup 2026 and although they failed to win a single match in the tournament, they managed to give big fight to the likes of Ghana, Croatia and even Harry Kane’s England – going down 2-0 to the EnglishmenHead coach Khalid Jamal’s side will not find the going easy but should consider this as a ‘lifetime experience’, according to former footballer and currently India’s Under-17 head coach Meherajuddin Wadoo.
In an exclusive interview to India.com website ahead of the clash against Panama, Wadoo gave the example of World Cup 2026’s surprise package Cape Verde from where India can take inspiration“Head coach Khalid Jamil has a massive challenge ahead of him but the players should consider it like a life-time opportunityThe Indian team needs to work like a unit and give a tough fight to Panama,” Wadoo told India.com in an exclusive interview on Thursday.
India have the odds stacked up against them with a football league yet to kick off and a current FIFA rankings of 138“India just need to keep themselves positiveI don’t think India are ready for this challengeThe league hasn’t started and they are about to face three countries who played in the FIFA World Cup just three months backBut it is a chance for them to learn a lot from these matches,” Wadoo felt.
VIDEO | Karnataka: The Indian senior men’s national football team has entered its final phases of training in Bengaluru ahead of their highly anticipated international friendly against Panama, scheduled for tomorrow, September 25, at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium.
(Full video… pic.twitter.com/ZMm1ShvpwR
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 24, 2026
‘Panama can be troubled by long crosses and set pieces’
Panama are coming to India with a squad featuring 14 players from their FIFA World Cup 2026 squadBut Wadoo believes that one area of concern for the nation of 4.65 million population could be long crosses and set-pieces.
“India’s chances will depend on how Khalid Jamil will prepare themThe home team will look to give a big fight to all the three teamsBut we saw how Cape Verde shocked everyone in the FIFA World Cup recently and if they can do it, why can’t India? We have to be defensively very strong against Panama, that should be Khalid’s main strategy,” the 42-year-old former India footballer said.
Asked about possible weaknesses in Panama team that India can exploit, Wadoo said, “I saw all of Panama’s matches at the World CupThey gave a big fight to England, holding them down to a goalless first half and didn’t let Ghana and Croatia score more than one goalBut they can be troubled by long crosses or set-pieces because Jude Bellingham had opened the scoring for England with a similar situation.”
India won’t have a lot of recovery time after game against Panama with clashes against Brazil and Uruguay set to take place in a week’s time in Kolkata.
“Khalid Jamil will have a tough task managing his squadIt will be interesting to see what will happen if someone gets injuredThe recovery time is very shortBut we believe in Indian football and the teamThe players have to believe in their ability and stay hopeful that they can defeat Panama,” Wadoo said.
When and where to watch India vs Panama football match in India?
The India vs Panama football friendly will be available LIVE on TV on Sony Sports Ten 2 SD & HD, Sony Aath SD and HD (Bengali) channels in India from 730pm onwards on FridayIt will also be available for live streaming on SonyLiv website and app.
