DHAKA, Jan 8: Reigning champions India will confront arch-rivals Pakistan in the opener of the South Asia’s biggest football event which is to begin Friday in the Bangladeshi capital, a year after it was originally scheduled.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia will inaugurate the eight-team South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) championship in a 45-minute opening ceremony at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka.

Newcomers Afganistan are scheduled to take on Sri Lanka in the second match Friday.

Bhutan, Maldives and hosts Bangladesh, the other nations in South Asia, complete the line-up in the 10-day event.

The teams are divided into two groups: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Afganistan in one and Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and the Maldives in the other.—AFP