Sri Lanka Crush Bhutan 4–1 in FIFA International Friendly Ahead of SAFF Championship

  Sri Lanka team celebrating victory

By Susil Premalal

Sri Lanka recorded a comfortable 4–1 victory over Bhutan in a FIFA International Friendly 2026 March Series match played yesterday at the NT Ground in Bangkok, Thailand.

The match was organized by the football authorities of both countries as a preparatory fixture ahead of the upcoming South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Men’s Cup 15th Edition International Tournament, scheduled to be held in Bangladesh from November 7–17, 2026.

From the opening whistle to the final minute, Sri Lanka enjoyed the majority of possession and controlled the game throughout.

By the end of the first half, Sri Lanka led 1–0, with Wade Dekker scoring the opening goal in the 16th minute.

Sri Lanka’s second goal came in the 64th minute when Barath Suresh found the net with a spectacular header that attracted the attention of spectators.

Wassem Razek added Sri Lanka’s third goal in the 78th minute, while Rahul Suresh scored the fourth goal in stoppage time (90+3 minutes). Bhutan’s only goal of the match was scored by Rinzin Dorji in the 80th minute.

According to Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL) President Jaswar Umar, Sri Lanka, which was ranked 191st in the FIFA World Rankings, is expected to move up two places to 189th following the victory over Bhutan.

Bhutan entered the match ranked 186th in the FIFA rankings.

This was Sri Lanka’s second international match of the year. The national team previously participated in the AFC Asian Cup 2027 (Saudi Arabia) Qualification Round, Group D, where Sri Lanka defeated Chinese Taipei 3–1 in the second leg of their home-and-away fixture on March 28.

According to the Sri Lanka–Bhutan international football history, the two nations have met on nine occasions, with Sri Lanka winning seven matches and Bhutan winning two.