VFF President present, AFC calls on members to do something special

On October 15, in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) held the 7th meeting of the AFC Executive Committee. The meeting took place right before the AFC Awards Riyadh 2025 ceremony.

President of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) Tran Quoc Tuan attended as a member of the AFC Standing Committee, Chairman of the AFC Competitions Committee and member of the Asian Cup Organizing Committee for the 2023-2027 term.

In his opening remarks, AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa expressed his deep gratitude to the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) for the warm welcome and thoughtful organization. At the same time, AFC acknowledged Saudi Arabia's proactive role in hosting many important AFC events over the past week, including the Dream Asia Foundation Conference, the Technical Committee meetings and the upcoming AFC Presidents and Secretaries General Conference.

Mr. Tran Quoc Tuan (3rd from right) attended the AFC meeting.

PHOTO: VFF

Asian football has a special record, will continue with the federations in trouble

At the meeting, AFC President Shaikh Salman acknowledged the outstanding achievements of Asian football in recent times, congratulating Qatar and Saudi Arabia as the first two teams of the continent to win tickets to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. He also praised Al Hilal SFC for reaching the quarter-finals of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, with the participation of three AFC referees in the final match of this tournament.

“Our meeting in Riyadh is a testament to the spirit of unity and the steady progress of Asian football. Our teams have shown impressive performance on the international stage, contributing to raising the profile of football on the continent,” said President Shaikh Salman.

In addition to appreciating the professional achievements, the AFC President also shared the responsibility of the Asian football community in accompanying the member associations facing difficulties, especially the Palestine Football Association (PFA). He expressed his deep condolences to the victims in Gaza and affirmed that the AFC will continue to support the PFA in the process of restoring football activities, protecting players, officials and maintaining the spirit of the king sport .

In addition, the AFC President also expressed sympathy and support for the Nepal Football Association (ANFA) and the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) in the face of current difficulties, and called on member federations to share and spread the spirit of solidarity, resilience and hope through football.

AFC achieves many achievements in 2025

PHOTO: VFF

During the working session, the AFC Executive Board approved the “Equal Pitch” Policy and Programme – an initiative to promote equality and inclusion in football, and approved the decision of the AFC Futsal and Beach Soccer Committee to award the hosting rights for the next two editions of the AFC Beach Soccer Asian Cup™ to Thailand.

The AFC also announced the signing of a coaching cooperation agreement between the AFC and UEFA, which aims to recognise the equivalence of coaching qualifications, enhance knowledge sharing and exchange of experiences between the two associations. The agreement, which runs until 2029, is the result of a two-year consultation process.

At the end of the meeting, the AFC Executive Committee confirmed that the 2026 AFC Awards ceremony will be held in Thailand.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/chu-tich-vff-co-mat-afc-keu-goi-cac-thanh-vien-lam-dieu-dac-biet-185251016191718241.htm