Kochi: The Indian Blind Football Team won the Asia-Oceania Division Two Championship 2025 at the USC Ground in Kochi on October 3–4. The tournament was an IBSA ranking event and will influence India’s world standings.
India began with a 2-2 draw against Uzbekistan in the opening match. In the decisive second match India routed Uzbekistan 6-2 to clinch the title. The team’s commanding performance combined disciplined defending with fast, clinical attacks.
Uttarakhand’s own Sovendra Bhandari, captain of the side, was the tournament hero. He scored four goals across two matches, including a historic hat-trick in the second game. Bhandari became the first Indian to score a hat-trick in an international blind football tournament.
The championship also highlighted the role of goal-guides and coaches. The assistant coach and goal-guide from the National Institute for Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities (NIEPVD), Dehradun, reached a landmark 150 goals as a guide — 36 at international level and 114 at national level. Two international hat-tricks in his career came alongside Sovendra Bhandari and Meghalaya’s Killingson D. Marak.
Tushar Kumar, another player from NIEPVD, Dehradun, was part of the winning squad. The presence of two athletes from Uttarakhand underlines the state’s growing contribution to blind football in India.
As an IBSA ranking tournament, the victory will boost India’s prospects in the global order. The win is expected to strengthen the Indian Blind Football Team’s position as it prepares for higher-level competitions.
