The FIFA ASEAN Cup prize money is too attractive.
On October 26, 2025, FIFA President Gianni Infantino announced the launch of a new tournament, the FIFA ASEAN Cup, for 11 Southeast Asian national teams, on the sidelines of the 47th ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur. The tournament could be held during FIFA Days and is expected to feature 14 teams, divided into two divisions: Division 1 with 8 teams and Division 2 with 6 teams, both divided into two groups. Division allocation will be based on the teams' FIFA rankings.
The Vietnamese national team will have to compete intensely in both the AFF Cup and the FIFA ASEAN Cup.
PHOTO: MINH TU
Indonesia is expected to host the first-tier matches, while the second-tier matches are tentatively scheduled to take place in Hong Kong (China). The tournament format will not include a semi-final round. Instead, the top two teams from each tier will meet in the final, while the second-place teams will compete for third place. Each team is expected to play 2-4 matches and will receive a participation fee of US$125,000, plus prize money for each win and draw. The champion could receive US$1 million, while the second-tier champion would receive US$300,000. The total prize pool is estimated at around US$4 million.
According to the Times of India , the national teams of India, China, and Hong Kong (China) will participate in the FIFA ASEAN Cup 2026. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has confirmed its participation. "The AIFF has accepted FIFA's invitation and signed an agreement to participate. We are currently awaiting further details," AIFF Deputy Secretary-General Satyanarayan told the Times of India on May 7th. Meanwhile, the Chinese team has yet to respond to this information.
Based on current world rankings, the FIFA ASEAN Cup's top 1 teams will consist of 8 teams: Thailand (world rank 93), China (94), Vietnam (99), Indonesia (122), Philippines (135), India (136), Malaysia (138) and Singapore (147); the second 2 teams will consist of: Hong Kong (155), Myanmar (158), Cambodia (177), Laos (185), Brunei (193) and Timor-Leste (200).
A difficult problem for Mr. Kim.
Previously, the AFF Cup was held every two years in Southeast Asia. However, this tournament took place outside of FIFA Days and usually lasted about a month, so Southeast Asian teams received few points. The FIFA ASEAN Cup, however, is completely different because it takes place during FIFA Days. Winning a match earns teams a significant number of points, while losing results in fewer.
Besides earning many FIFA points, the very high prize money is also a motivation for coach Kim Sang-sik and his team to set higher goals compared to the AFF Cup (the Vietnamese national team received $300,000 for winning the 2024 AFF Cup). However, the difficulty for Coach Kim is the short time between the two tournaments. If the AFF Cup still takes place as scheduled from July 24th to August 26th, the FIFA ASEAN Cup 2026 is expected to take place from September 21st to October 6th. Thus, after the AFF Cup ends, Coach Kim and his team will have less than a month to prepare for the next tournament.
Clearly, if Vietnam were to exert themselves fully in their first tournament as defending champions, they would need to play at least six matches to reach the final (four group stage matches and two semi-final matches). If they reach the final, the total number of matches Vietnam would have to play is eight. Having to play eight matches in just over a month is clearly too demanding for any team. Furthermore, less than a month later, the team would have to enter an even more intense tournament, expected to include teams from outside Southeast Asia. This is a difficult dilemma for Coach Kim when deciding which tournament to prioritize. If they abandon the AFF Cup to focus all their efforts on the FIFA ASEAN Cup, Vietnam will likely face criticism from fans who want to win everything, especially as the defending champions. On the other hand, if they focus all their efforts on the AFF Cup to defend their title, will the Vietnamese players have the stamina to compete in the equally important FIFA ASEAN Cup?
It's clear that to conquer these two tournaments simultaneously, Kim must prepare a deep squad with many quality players playing in the same position starting now.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/lua-chon-kho-khan-cua-ong-kim-sang-sik-18526050819372145.htm
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