In February this year, Mongolia experienced unprecedented cold weather, with temperatures reaching minus 30 degrees Celsius, so brutally cold that walking outdoors for even 10 minutes will leave you out of breath and will make you think that you would never want to go outside again. In my second year in Mongolia, I am really feeling the harshness of the climate here.

Last year, Mongolia lost to Afghanistan in the first round of the FIFA World Cup 2026™ qualifiers and missed out on the chance to play against Japan, so we are currently planning our 2024 schedule. This year we have five FIFA International Windows, where we plan to play international matches in March, June, September, October and November.

The first of the International Matches is a trip to Azerbaijan in March, where the team will play two friendlies against Azerbaijan and Tanzania. Both teams will be formidable opponents for Mongolia, with Azerbaijan having drawn with Ireland and despite losing 0-1, played a competitive game against Belgium in their most recent match. Tanzania also performed well against strong nations at the Africa Cup of Nations, so it will be interesting to see how the Mongolia National Team fare against European and African sides.

In September we have the play-off round of the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ qualifiers and in November we have the EAFF E-1 Football Championship 2025 Preliminary Competition. The EAFF E-1 Football Championship is a great motivation for me because we have a chance to play against Japan if we get through the qualifiers.

Normally, all club teams in Mongolia start training in mid-March when the cold weather begins to ease, but since the Mongolian Football Federation built a weatherproof indoor air dome as their training centre last year, most teams have been able to use the facility to start their training camps in February.

As mentioned earlier, it is not possible to train outside during the winter months due to the extremely cold weather. Although there is one club that has an air dome, it is the size of a futsal pitch, so all the teams now train in the air dome built by the Mongolian Football Federation.

The Mongolia National Team is entering a phase of generational change. In last year's World Cup qualifiers, we built our team around young players who are showing signs of gradual improvement, giving us great hope for future tournaments. With the help of our local club coaches, we are preparing to start the season with the best possible squad.