Kolkata, August 19: East Bengal FC booked their spot in the Durand Cup 2026 final, beating Sporting Delhi in the semi-final. The match, which was goalless in regulation time, headed to a penalty shootout, with East Bengal winning 5–3 on Wednesday evening at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan.

With a compact team, though not effective in the attacking third, Sporting Club Delhi tried their best to prevent rhythmic East Bengal FC, as the Red and Gold brigade were in condition to fight till the end and ended up snatching the win.

Within three minutes, with a combined play, Edmund backheeled the ball to Jesin TK. From the left, Jesin TK sent the ball for Bipin at the second post, though Bipin failed to make perfect contact. In the 16th minute, Ramirez earned a foul which resulted in a free-kick. From outside the box, Rashid took the set-piece, but his shot hit the crossbar. Within minutes, another shot from East Bengal FC hit the post. Jesin, from the right inside the box, unleashed a shot which closely hit the top of the post.

And in the 33rd minute, with a defensive lapse, East Bengal FC conceded a penalty to SC Delhi. From an attack, Sandip Mandi challenged Araujo inside the box. From the spot, Araujo took the kick but sent the ball straight into Gill’s hands.

Early in the second half, probably the best chance for SC Delhi, but they missed out. With a forward pass, Araujo beat Sandip Mandi and moved forward. In a one-on-one situation, he attempted a shot, but Anwar Ali came out and intercepted to clear the threat.

In the 74th minute of the match, Rashid’s shot once again touched the post. He attempted a long-range shot, and the ball, deflecting off Azhar, hit the post and went out. In the next minute, possibly East Bengal FC created their best goal-bound chance and could have sealed the game. Ikonomidis cut back from the left inside the box, from close to the goalline. David attempted, but Nora Fernandes was alert to save. David’s second attempt, the loose ball, but he sent it over the crossbar.

And after East Bengal FC attempting 20 shots, in the match played out searching for the breakthrough, though four were on target, and the other side defended throughout the match after the contrasting contest, the semi-final headed into a penalty shootout, as both teams did everything except scoring and ended up the semi-final goalless.

Anwar goes for the Red and Gold first and puts his team ahead, while Sebastian Pena missed for Delhi. Rohit Danu puts East Bengal 2–0 ahead, and Araujo finds the target this time to reduce the score gap to 2–1 for Delhi. Lalchungnunga made it 3–1, while Duvan made it 3–2 for Delhi.

Ikonomidis gave East Bengal a 4–2 strong lead, while Aimen kept Delhi steady in the game at 4–3. The last shot for East Bengal, if they hit the target, would seal their final spot, and Rashid, the saviour of the Red and Gold, stepped in and, without wasting a second, hit the target to make it 5–3 for East Bengal FC.

Sporting Club Delhi, despite being defensively compact and making East Bengal FC work hard for every chance, failed to make their opportunities. East Bengal FC showed great composure and determination, and after failing to find the breakthrough in 90 minutes, they kept their nerves in the penalty shootout with Prabsukhan Gill stood tall. Rashid’s winning penalty sealed their place in the Durand Cup 2026 final, while Delhi’s missed chances and penalty shootout miss ultimately ended their campaign at the semi-final stage.

Now, the second semi-final awaits East Bengal FC, with their most favourite rivals Mohun Bagan SG and the consecutive defending champions NorthEast United FC set to battle for the remaining spot in the final. It remains to be seen who will earn the spot to contest the title clash against East Bengal FC.