SINGAPORE: The Lions will face former Asian Cup champions Australia and Iraq at the 2027 Asian Cup following the group stage draw late on Saturday (May 9) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The Lions were drawn into Group D, where they will take on Australia, Tajikistan, and Iraq on Jan 9, Jan 14 and Jan 19, respectively.
Defending champions Qatar were paired with Japan in a tough group, alongside Thailand and Indonesia.
Tournament hosts Saudi Arabia, Japan, South Korea and Australia – all of whom will be playing at this summer’s World Cup – are among the favourites to progress to the knockout rounds.
Speaking after the draw, Lions coach Gavin Lee said: “The qualification united a lot of people in the country and hopefully we can continue to sustain the growth and use this platform to inspire the new generation.
“Coming into this competition, we know there won’t be any easy group. Now we go back to study the group, study the opponents and prepare in the best possible manner. Our target is very clear, that is to perform and play in a way that the people back home can be proud of us.”
This is the first time Singapore have qualified for the tournament on merit.
The Lions qualified for the tournament in November 2025 after coming back from behind to beat Hong Kong 2-1 to top their qualifying group.
They beat Bangladesh 1-0 in March to end their campaign unbeaten.
The Asian Cup draw had initially been scheduled for Apr 11, but was postponed due to the war in the Middle East.
Singapore’s only other appearance came in 1984, when they took part automatically as hosts.
