Singapore Cup to kick off on Nov 1 with new format, only 7 teams
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The upcoming Singapore Cup comprises seven Singapore Premier League teams with the exception of Young Lions.
PHOTO: ST FILE
Follow topic:
- The Nov 1-Jan 10 Singapore Cup features seven SPL teams after Young Lions' withdrawal due to Dec 3-18 SEA Games football tournament.
- Lion City Sailors and BG Tampines Rovers are seeded into the semi-finals; other teams compete in a round-robin group stage.
- This format ensures compliance with AFC regulations requiring at least 24 domestic matches per club.
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SINGAPORE – The upcoming Singapore Cup will take on a new format when it kicks off on Nov 1 with its smallest line-up of seven teams.
In a statement issued on Oct 24, the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) announced that the Nov 1-Jan 10 event comprises seven Singapore Premier League (SPL) teams with the exception of Young Lions, whose players will be involved in the Dec 3-18 South-east Asian Games football tournament
Seeded based on their positions in the previous SPL season, champions and Cup winners Lion City Sailors and runners-up BG Tampines Rovers received byes into the semi-finals.
The remaining five clubs – Geylang International, Balestier Khalsa, Albirex Niigata, Hougang United and Tanjong Pagar United – will compete in a single round-robin group stage, with each club playing four matches. The top two teams will progress to the two-legged semi-finals and take on either the Sailors or the Stags on Dec 14 and 20.
The group games and semi-finals will be played at Our Tampines Hub, Bishan Stadium and Jurong East Stadium, before the final is held at the re-turfed Jalan Besar Stadium on Jan 10. This season’s winners will earn a play-off spot in next season’s Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League 2.
Tickets will go on sale from Oct 27 via Trip.com and the matches will be broadcast live on StarHub TV, Singtel TV, meWatch and on SPL’s official YouTube platform.
There will be no SPL games during the Singapore Cup period, although there will also be a Nov 10-18 hiatus during the Fifa international window when the Lions play a Nov 13 friendly in Thailand. This will be held before the crucial Nov 18 Asian Cup qualifier Group C match
The FAS noted that an important consideration in determining this year’s Singapore Cup format was compliance with AFC’s entry regulations for club competitions, “which require each club in all domestic top division leagues to play a minimum of 24 matches per season across both the domestic top division league and domestic cup campaigns”.
With the new format, the Sailors and the Stags will hit the quota through 21 SPL matches, their Community Shield showdown in which Tampines won 4-1
The Young Lions, considered a developmental squad in the regulations, are not eligible to participate in AFC club competitions and hence do not need to meet the quota.
The national sports association also revealed that it had “initial plans to invite a foreign club to participate in this year’s Singapore Cup” – similar to BG Pathum United’s involvement in the last edition – but had to shelve them “due to scheduling and logistical constraints”.
Including foreign teams BG Pathum and Brunei DPMM, as well as Young Lions, there were 10 participating teams in the last Singapore Cup, as SPL champions and Community Shield winners Sailors clinched a domestic treble by beating Tampines 1-0 in the final
The 2018, 2019 and 2022 editions featured eight clubs, which was the previous lowest number of participating teams, while at its peak from 2006 to 2014, there were 16 local and foreign teams competing.
