Vietnam have been placed in Pot 2 and will also host one of the qualifying groups.

This year’s tournament marks the first time the AFC has introduced a two-tier competition format consisting of a Qualifiers Stage and a Development Stage.

Based on results from the 2018, 2023 and 2025 editions, Vietnam were ranked 14th in Asia and placed in Pot 2 alongside Qatar, Indonesia, Syria, Thailand, Yemen, the Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan.

In addition to Vietnam, Bahrain, Cambodia, the Kyrgyz Republic, Laos, Qatar, Thailand and Uzbekistan will also host qualifying groups.

Under the draw procedure, host nations will be placed in a separate pot to ensure they are distributed evenly across the eight groups. As a Pot 2 team, Vietnam will automatically take position No. 2 in their group.

The qualifying stage will determine eight group winners and the seven best runners-up that will advance to the 2027 AFC U20 Asian Cup finals.

Meanwhile, the six lowest-ranked teams will drop to the Development Stage for the next edition.

The qualifiers are scheduled for August 31-September 6, 2026.

Vietnam’s coaching staff are expected to build the core squad around players representing the Vietnam U19 team at the 2026 ASEAN U-19 Boys’ Championship.

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