SINGAPORE – After a period of uncertainty due to the conflict in the Middle East, the national women’s football team are eager to return to action as they kick off their 2026 Women’s Asian Cup qualifying campaign against Bhutan on July 7.

Originally slated to take place from June 23 to July 5 in Jordan’s capital Amman, the escalation of the Iran-Israel conflict prompted the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to

delay and relocate the competition

The Group A matches were initially shifted to Qatar, before a US-brokered ceasefire on June 24 allowed the games to return to their original location – the King Abdullah II Stadium in Amman – from July 7 to 19.

National head coach Karim Bencherifa admitted the two-week postponement disrupted world No. 139 Singapore’s plans, as preparations had been timed to ensure players were in peak physical form for the original schedule.

But the Moroccan said safety was also a major concern and, now that it has been addressed, his players are ready to compete.

He said: “We’re excited to finally go and play the games, the players as well. The momentum could have been better if we would have gone (earlier) – the momentum was so nice when we played that game (an international friendly) against Hong Kong on (June) 15th and we were flying a few days later.

“It was good momentum, we had the full squad. Now we’re picking up again.”

The Lionesses’ opening match against world No. 171 Bhutan will be followed by fixtures against Iran (68), Jordan (75) and Lebanon (130).

Only the group winners will progress to the Women’s Asian Cup, which will be staged in Australia in March 2026.

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