The All India Football Federation intends to host the Santosh Trophy National Championships' knockout rounds in Saudi Arabia early the next year, which is an unusual action.

On Monday, Karnataka defeated Gujarat 4-0 to advance to the semifinals of the 75th Santosh Trophy, where they will face hosts Kerala. Odisha needed only a draw to secure a semi-final position on the penultimate day of league matches, but they were at their wasteful best and fell 0-2 to Services.

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) announced the schedule for the 2020 season of the Santosh Trophy on Friday after the draw was held in Dwarka, New Delhi. Delhi will play the winners of Group A in the South Zone Qualifiers, while Services locks horns with Jharkhand on day one (January 10).

A second-half Bikash Thapa strike paved way for Services to win their sixth Santosh Trophy title with a 1-0 victory over Punjab at the Guru Nanak Stadium on Sunday. This is the sixth time Services have won the Santosh Trophy, finishing runner-ups on five of the 11 times they reached the final.

Services defeated Karnataka in the second semi-final of the ongoing Santosh Trophy football competition in Ludhiana and will meet Punjab in the final on Sunday.  After Lallawmkima and Nikhil Raj scored for Services and Karnataka respectively, the team from South India lost in the penalty shootout.