The first edition of the Merdeka Tournament was held in August and September 1957 in Malaya (now Malaysia).

[nb 1] Singapore won a consolation tournament for teams that did not qualify for the final round.

A series of knockout ties was held to determine which teams would compete in the second round.

The losing teams from the first round played a series of matches against one another as a consolation tournament.

The team finishing top of the group was the winner of this tournament.