Vietnam women's team and U22 are the number 1 seeds at SEA Games 33

The women's team and U22 Vietnam are the number 1 seeds at SEA Games 33 - Photo: VFF

On May 21, AFF held a meeting in Bangkok, Thailand focusing on men's and women's football at the 33rd SEA Games.

Men's football only uses U22 players (born after 1-1-2003) with 11 teams divided into 3 groups. Group A has 3 teams, Group B and C have 4 teams. The teams compete in a round robin to calculate points, the top three teams in each group and the second team with the best record advance to the semi-finals.

Teams are seeded based on their performance and hosting rights. Specifically, seed group 1 includes Thailand (host), Indonesia and Vietnam; group 2 includes Myanmar, Malaysia and Cambodia; group 3 includes Timor Leste, Philippines and Laos; group 4 includes Singapore and Brunei.

The group stage will take place from December 3 to 12; the semi-finals will be played on December 15; the third-place match and the final will be held on December 18. The competition venues are three stadiums: Rajamangala (Bangkok), Tinsulanonda (Songkhla) and 700th Anniversary of Chiangmai (Chiangmai). Rajamangala will be the main competition venue from the semi-finals onwards.

The Vietnamese women's team is making efforts to renew its force to aim for important tournaments in 2025 - Photo: MINH DUC

Women's football consists of 9 teams divided into three groups of three teams each. The teams will compete in a round robin, selecting the top three teams and the best second team to advance to the semi-finals.

Group 1 includes Thailand (host), Vietnam and Myanmar; group 2 includes Cambodia, Philippines, Singapore; group 3 includes Malaysia, Laos, Indonesia.

The group stage matches take place from December 4 to 13; the semi-finals are on December 14; the third-place match and final are held on December 17.

The two stadiums chosen as the venues for the group stage matches of women's football are Chonburi and TNSU Chonburi. From the semi-finals onwards, Chonburi Stadium will be the main venue.

The change in the competition format from 2 groups to 3 groups is a historic decision for football at the SEA Games. Host Thailand has received consensus from the AFC and AFF.

The reduction in the match schedule is to ensure the players' physical strength and health and the expectation is that the matches will be more exciting.

Southeast Asian tournament schedule

Besides SEA Games 33, AFF also approved plans to compete in other regional football tournaments.

The 2025 AFF Women's Championship will be hosted by Vietnam from August 6 to 19; the 2025 AFF U23 Championship in Indonesia from July 15 to 29;

The 2026 AFF Championship is scheduled to take place from July 25 to August 26, 2026, and the 2025-2026 AFF Club Championship will take place from August 2025 to May 2026.

HOANG TUNG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/doi-tuyen-nu-va-u22-viet-nam-la-hat-giong-so-1-tai-sea-games-33-20250521173457334.htm