Merlion Cup returns after three-year hiatus

SINGAPORE (2 March 2023) – The Merlion Cup will return for the ninth edition later this month after a three-year hiatus.

To be held from 24 to 26 March 2023, the tournament will feature the National Under-22 teams of Cambodia, Hong Kong, Malaysia and host Singapore.

Apart from Singapore and Malaysia, the other two teams will be participating in the Merlion Cup for the first time.

The tournament will consist of two stages, with all four teams competing in the opening round on Friday, 24 March 2023.

The losing teams from the first stage will compete in a 3rd and 4th placing match two days later, as the curtain raiser prior to the final.

All four matches will be played at the Jalan Besar Stadium.

The official tournament draw to determine the fixtures will take place on Monday, 6 March 2023 at 5pm (Singapore time), live on the FAS YouTube page while ticketing information will be released in due course.

First introduced in 1982, the invitational tournament was an annual affair until 1986 and saw participation from teams hailing from 18 countries including Australia, Iraq, China and Chile in past editions.

The sixth edition was held in 1992, and was won by South Korea; the last iteration was a one-off tie against Liverpool in 2009. As of the 2019 edition, the Merlion Cup has since become an age-group tournament, specifically for the Under-22 National Teams.

#AFF

#FAS