2006 AFC Challenge Cup
 |
|
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Bangladesh |
| Dates | 1 April – 16 April |
| Venue(s) | 3 (in 2 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |
 Tajikistan (1st title)
|
| Runners-up |  Sri Lanka |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 31 |
| Goals scored | 82 (2.65 per match) |
| Attendance | 150,150 (4,844 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |
 Fahed Attal (8 goals) |
| Best player |
Ibrahim Rabimov
|
The 2006 AFC Challenge Cup was held between April 1 and April 16, 2006 in Bangladesh. Sixteen teams were split into four groups, the top two in each group qualifying for the quarterfinals, and from then on a straight knockout contest. There was no qualification stage. The cup winner was Tajikistan. The fair play award was won by Sri Lanka and Tajikistani Ibrahim Rabimov won the most valuable player award.
The AFC classed seventeen nations as emerging associations, which need time to develop their football. They were selected in August, 2005 to take part. Laos, Mongolia, and Timor-Leste were initially selected to participate, but were later replaced by Bangladesh and India of the developing associations class, reducing the number of participating teams to sixteen.
The AFC decided at its annual meeting, that Bangladesh would host the opening ceremony and that Nepal would host the final unless Bangladesh makes it into the last two, in which case it would be held in Dhaka, its capital. It was originally planned that the teams in Groups A and B would play their games in Nepal and that teams in Groups C and D would play in Bangladesh, but due to the political unrest that shook Nepal, it was decided that only Bangladesh would host the tournament. The Challenge Cup was originally scheduled to take place between March 26 to April 9, 2006 but was changed to avoid clashes with Bangladesh's Independence Day on March 26. The two stadia that were selected to be used during this tournament were: the Bangabandhu Stadium in Dhaka and the MA Aziz Stadium in Chittagong. However, the Bangladesh Army Stadium in Dhaka was later used to make-up the matches that were abandoned due to heavy rain.
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