AFF Cup changes "time zone", Vietnam team faces challenges

From 2026, the Southeast Asian Football Championship (AFF Cup) will take place in the summer. This is the time when most national championships in countries in the region have ended, so the Vietnamese team will face many difficulties.

T OR TURNING POINT

The AFF Cup has been held regularly from December of the previous year to January of the following year for the past 24 years. The time of holding it at the end of the year is considered suitable for the competition schedule of national championships in the region. However, recently, national championships (including V-League) no longer take place in 1 year but from autumn of this year to summer of next year, following the model of the world's leading national championships. This is also the reason why the Southeast Asian Football Federation (AFF) has made a change: AFF Cup 2026 is expected to start from July 24 - August 26, 2026, instead of taking place at the end of 2026.

The AFF said this landmark decision could ensure that participating teams will be able to call up their best players, instead of joining with a patchwork squad. For example, in the AFF Cup 2024, the Indonesian and Thai teams will not have the services of stars playing abroad. The reason is that the AFF Cup has not yet been included in the official competition system by FIFA, so the host clubs have the right to refuse to release players.

Hoang Duc (middle) and his teammates will have the opportunity to face world-class stars from Thailand and Indonesia thanks to the new schedule of the AFF Cup.

PHOTO: DONG NGUYEN KHANG

CHALLENGE FOR MR. KIM

In previous AFF Cup tournaments, the Vietnamese team often had an advantage in preparation compared to its opponents. The V-League will be suspended, and clubs are ready to let their players serve the national team. Thanks to that, Coach Park Hang-seo and Kim Sang-sik will have the strongest squad when entering the campaign. On the contrary, other championship candidates do not have that advantage. The Indonesian team cannot have the strongest personnel like when competing in the World Cup qualifiers, because players playing in the Netherlands, Japan, and Italy are not allowed by their clubs to return to the national team. Thailand is also in a similar situation. Many strong clubs in the Thai-League such as Buriram United, BG Pathum United... only agree to let 2-3 players join the national team. Stars such as Chanathip Songkrasin, Theerathon Bunmathan... all had to serve their clubs in the context of the Thai team competing in the AFF Cup.

But with the changes of AFF, things will be more difficult for the Vietnamese team. It is not yet certain whether teams like Thailand and Indonesia have the strongest squad or not (because the clubs also need players to concentrate to prepare for the new season), but it is likely that the football federations of the region will also find it easier to convince the clubs to release their players.

In general, changing the AFF Cup schedule from winter to summer can bring good news to Southeast Asian football, helping the tournament become more competitive and have better professional quality. In the short term, changing the "time zone" like that will of course cause difficulties for the Vietnamese team because the opponents will be stronger. But after all, when competing and rubbing shoulders with high-class players, the Vietnamese team will improve, thereby playing better to compete in big arenas such as the Asian Cup or World Cup qualifiers. In addition, the V-League does not need to be paused, helping clubs save on operating costs. Many players can maintain a continuous competition streak and maintain their form. The source of players for coach Kim Sang-sik to "choose the right person to entrust his gold" is also more diverse.

HCMC WOMEN'S CLUB AND THE GOAL OF 3 POINTS

At 7:00 p.m. today, November 16, Ho Chi Minh City Women's Club will face Lion City Sailors Club (Singapore) at Thong Nhat Stadium, in the second round of Group A - 2025 - 2026 Asian Women's Cup C1. The away team is rated the lowest in the group and lost 0-5 to Melbourne City (Australia) in the opening match. The goal of Huynh Nhu and her teammates is to continue winning. The home team needs to take advantage of the opportunity to accumulate points, before meeting the extremely strong opponent Melbourne City in the final round.

Coach Nguyen Hong Pham said that the HCMC women's team is in a good mental state and recovering quickly after the opening match (winning against the representative of the Philippines). In the remaining match of Group A also today, Melbourne City FC will meet Stallion Laguna FC (Philippines) at 3 p.m.

Nghi Thao

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/aff-cup-doi-mui-gio-doi-tuyen-viet-nam-doi-mat-thu-thach-18525111521494984.htm