According to the approved regulations, teams qualifying for the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026 finals in Saudi Arabia automatically secure places in the men’s football tournament at ASIAD 2026, while teams reaching the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 finals in Australia qualify for the women’s competition.

Vietnam is the only country in Southeast Asia to have qualified in both categories.

In the men’s event, Vietnam’s U23 team are among the 16 qualified sides, joining traditional Asian powers such as Japan, the Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Qatar and Uzbekistan. Within Southeast Asia, only Thailand also qualified, while teams including Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines failed to meet the criteria.

Vietnam’s qualification follows its strong performance at the AFC U23 Asian Cup, where the team secured a bronze medal, underlining steady progress at the continental level.

Under ASIAD regulations, men’s teams will compete with U23 players (born in 2003 or later) and may include up to three over-age players. However, the Vietnam Football Federation is expected to field a younger squad as part of its long-term development strategy.

In the women’s competition, Vietnam’s national team will make their eighth consecutive appearance at the Asian Games, reaffirming their status as one of the region’s leading sides. In Southeast Asia, only the Philippines also qualified, while Thailand missed out after failing to reach the Women’s Asian Cup finals despite hosting qualification matches.

It is also worth noting that Australia traditionally do not participate in the ASIAD. Should both men’s and women’s teams withdraw, their slots are expected to be reallocated to the next-best ranked teams from the qualification tournaments.

The tournament is scheduled to take place from September 19 to October 4 in Aichi and Nagoya, Japan, providing a major continental stage for Vietnamese football to further assert its standing in Asia.

Vietnamese athletes in good spirits ahead of ASIAD 20

Vietnamese athletes are gearing up for the 20th Asian Games (ASIAD) set to take place in Japan at the end of next year.