The knockout stages of the Dr T Ao Trophy Inter-District Football Championship 2025 will begin on Monday with the first two quarterfinal matches.
Group A winners Mon will face Group B runners-up Dimapur in the first quarterfinal at 1:00 pm, followed by Group B winners Chümoukedima taking on Group A runners-up Niuland in the second at 4:00 pm, both at the Indira Gandhi Stadium, Kohima.
Mon is yet to be defeated in the tournament, while Dimapur suffered a 0-2 loss to neighbours Chümoukedima in the group stage. The first quarterfinal will be a rematch of the final of the 2022 edition in Mokokchung, when Dimapur defeated Mon 2-0 with second-half goals from Kivi Zhimomi and Kakhevi.
Chümoukedima is the only team in the tournament yet to concede a goal, topping Group B with a perfect nine points. Niuland, on the other hand, scraped through to the knockout stage from the jaws of elimination with a last-minute stunner from Hivika, a strike that eliminated defending champions Tuensang in the group stage.