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Another chance to compete in FAM Atoll Championship

FAM has announced an extra week for sign ups, with this coming Thursday night being the deadline. Forms can be submitted via email to: [email protected].

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From a previous Minivan Championship match: The FAM has opened another opportunity to participate in the Atoll Championship, which is played to qualify teams for the Dhvehi Premier League. --- File photo

Umar Shan Shafeeq

2025-09-07 10:45:00

Football Association of Maldives (FAM) has offered a further chance for teams that want to participate in the Atoll Championship. The Atoll Championship is the qualifying tournament for atoll teams to play in the Dhivehi Premier League (DPL).

FAM's first announcement last month regarding signing up for the Atoll Championship reached its deadline on 1st September, with the sign up period lasting two weeks.

FAM has announced an extra week for sign ups, with this coming Thursday night being the deadline. Forms can be submitted via email to: [email protected].

The recent announcement also included a list for club participation rules and priorities for the tournament. The third procedure in the list states that if an island has more than one club that wants to partake in the tournament, FAM will choose a team by drawing lots.

Club participation rules and priorities:

  1. Clubs that want to take part in the tournament need their respective island councils to register them with the Commissioner of Sports.
  2. The club belonging to their island needs to be endorsed by their island council.
  3. Only one club per one island can join (if an island has more than one club that wants to partake in the tournament, FAM will choose a team through drawing lots.

FAM has split Maldives into four zones:

  1. North Region.
  2. Central Region.
  3. South Region.
  4. Male' Region.

Aside from Male' Region, the other three regions will begin their qualifying stages via the Atoll Championship. The starting dates of the Atoll Championship in the respective zones has been announced by the FAM in the gazette, which are:

  1. North Region: 1st October 2025 to 30th November 2025.
  2. Central Region: 15th November 2025 to 30th December 2025.
  3. South Region: 1st December 2025 to 15th February 2026.

The Atoll Championship will be held via a centralized basis

As per the framework that was published in the gazette, the tournament will be hosted in one island in each atoll or with multiple islands joining forces. The champion and runner-up teams from each atoll will qualify for their respective sub-zones. Each area has two sub-zones:

  1. North Region Zone 1: Haa Alif, Haa Dhaalu and Shaviyani.
  2. North Region Zone 2: Noonu, Raa, Baa and Lhaviyani.
  3. Central Region Zone 1: Kaafu, Alif Alif and Alif Dhaalu.
  4. Central Region Zone 2: Vaavu, Meemu, Faafu and Dhaalu.
  5. South Region Zone 1: Thaa, Laamu and Gaafu Alif.
  6. South Region Zone 2: Gaafu Dhaalu, Fuvahmulah and Addu.

Each regional league will play under the home-and-away format.

The sub-zone champion and runner-up teams will qualify for the regional league. The four teams that play in the regional league will play under the home-and-away format and abide by league rules. The champion and runner-up of each league will then qualify for the Dhivehi League qualifying round.

The qualifying round will consist of Male' Region's Second Division champion along with the 7th and 8th position teams from the league that starts next month.

The top four teams in that league will earn their slots to play in the DPL under the home-and-away format.

10 teams are currently competing in the Male' Region league. The 10 teams will play two games amongst each other, with the bottom two teams being relegated to the Second Division.

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