32 times champions Bengal have been placed in Group A of the main rounds of the Santosh Trophy football tournament which is scheduled to be held in two venues at Malappuram in Kerala next month. Bengal have been clubbed with hosts Kerala, Punjab, Meghalaya and Rajasthan.
They will open their campaign against Punjab on April 16 and will meet Kerala on April 18. Meghalaya will be their next opposition on April 22 and they will end their league phase campaign with a match against Rajasthan on April 24.
The top two teams of the two groups will make it to the semifinals of the premier tournament. The semifinals will be held on April 28 and 29 while the final is scheduled on May 2. The last phase matches will be staged at Payanadh Stadium in Manjeri.
GROUP A: Meghalaya, Punjab, Bengal, Rajasthan, Kerala (Matches from April 16-24)
GROUP B: Gujarat, Karnataka, Odisha, Services, Manipur (Matches from April 17-25)
