Acting Youth Minister Ali Waheed has extended an invitation to the Indian national football team, for the opening of the Maldivian football season.

The invitation was extended earlier on Wednesday, during a meeting with Indian ambassador Sunjay Sudhir.

Both parties held discussions on strengthening bilateral ties between the two neighboring countries, as well as ways to get more people interested in the sport.

Speaking after the meeting, the acting minister noted that the long history of competitiveness between both countries, in regards to football. Maldives and India have faced each other in the finals of the SAFF Championship, the men's football championship of South Asia organized by the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF), with the former taking the trophy in 2018.

Minister Waheed also noted that Maldives and India have not played a friendly match recently, and that "this is a good time" to check the Maldivian players' game.

In addition, Waheed has also invited Bollywood stars for the "highly publicized" season opening.