Singapore’s Women’s National Team is set for a busy June international window, beginning with two friendlies against Hong Kong, China, before heading to Jordan for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Asian Cup Australia 2026™ Qualifiers. Karim Bencherifa’s Lionesses are looking to build on encouraging signs from their last outing at the 2024 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Women’s Championship in Laos.
“We’ve come to this competition after our last participation at the AFF, which was quite positive,” he said. “I was happy with the way the girls performed. Now we are building on that.”
The Lionesses will line up in Group A alongside Lebanon, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Bhutan and Jordan. The qualifying tournament that runs from 23 June to 5 July, will be hosted in the Jordanian capital of Amman.
Bencherifa’s preparation in recent months has focused on finding the right balance between club and national team commitments for his players.
“We had two FIFA windows in February and April, but we decided not to use them so that clubs could prepare and start the Women’s Premier League (WPL) smoothly,” explained Bencherifa. “In the meantime, we worked on strength, fitness, and technical fundamentals through optional sessions that several players attended – and benefited from.”
Now back in full-time centralised training and gearing up for their first international fixtures of 2025, Bencherifa is delighted to see that things are coming together nicely.
“We’ll play two games, one closed-door on 12th June at Kallang Football Hub, and one match open to fans (on 15 June) because I feel it’s important for them to witness and support their national team,” said Bencherifa.
“Friendlies and practice matches allow us to try different players, test formations, and give most players a chance to show what they can do. The players are committed, and the staff is doing great work.”
The last time the Lionesses lined up against Hong Kong in a 2022 double-header, they fell 4-0 and 1-0. Bencherifa believes it will be a completely different proposition this time around, even though the women juggle their football dreams with work and school commitments.
“Every time we step on the field, we look to win. There’s no exception for the matches against Hong Kong because positive results will give our team the much-needed confidence to head to Jordan with high spirits,” said Bencherifa.
“I hope our fans understand that our players make a lot of sacrifices to wear the Singapore jersey, and that shows the commitment they have,” added Bencherifa, who remained optimistic about just what his charges can achieve against Hong Kong, and also in Amman.
“The players are preparing well and they are committed to training,” said Bencherifa. “I strongly believe that we have a chance to give a good performance and a good fight on the field.”
