Hot: Vietnam women's team faces Japan and India, Asian Cup draw is intense

The Vietnamese women's team is in Group C with Japan, India and Taiwan in the 2026 Asian Cup finals.

Determining the group of the Vietnam women's team in the 2026 Asian Cup

On the afternoon of July 29, the draw for the group stage of the 2026 Asian Cup took place. According to the results, the Vietnamese women's team is in Group C with Japan, India and Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Group A includes host Australia, South Korea, Iran and the Philippines. Group B includes the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, China, Bangladesh and Uzbekistan.

Asian Cup 2026 final round draw results

PHOTO: AFC

Compared to the 2022 Asian Cup when the Vietnamese women's team was in the same group as Japan, South Korea and Myanmar, the group in the 2026 Asian Cup is clearly easier. In addition to Japan at a very high level, both opponents India and Taiwan have FIFA rankings and achievements that are not as good as coach Mai Duc Chung and his team. A favorable group is an opportunity for the Vietnamese women's team to advance to the quarterfinals.

Notably, the 2026 Asian Cup is also the qualifying round for the 2027 World Cup, where Asia has 6 places to participate through the Asian Cup. The 4 winning teams of the quarter-finals will automatically have 4 direct spots. Meanwhile, the 4 losing teams of the quarter-finals will participate in 2 play-off matches, selecting 2 teams that will win tickets to the highest level of world football. Thus, if they reach the quarter-finals, at least the Vietnamese women's team will be able to participate in the play-off match.

To reach the quarter-finals, the Vietnamese women's team needs to finish first or second in the group, or be in the group of two third-place teams with the best results.

Fight for the World Cup

The goal of the Vietnamese women's team is to win a ticket to the 2027 World Cup. To do so, coach Mai Duc Chung and his team need to recreate the historic journey they had at the 2022 Asian Cup.

At the Asian Cup 3 years ago, the Vietnamese women's team was in the same group as Japan, Korea and Myanmar. Huynh Nhu and her teammates lost both of their first two matches against Japan and Korea with the same score of 0-3. In the decisive match against Myanmar, the Vietnamese women's team tied 2-2, thereby finishing third overall (equal in points to Myanmar but with a better goal difference).

Will the Vietnamese women's team return to the World Cup?

PHOTO: MINH TU

Because India was eliminated from Group A because many players had Covid-19, the Vietnamese women's team then overcame Iran (who also finished third but lost all the time) to be among the best third-placed teams. In the quarterfinals, the Vietnamese women's team lost 1-3 to China, so they had to play a play-off. Here, coach Mai Duc Chung and his team made history by defeating Thailand (2-0) and Taiwan (2-1), thereby winning a ticket to the World Cup for the first time in history.

The reigning Asian Cup champions are the Chinese women's team, while Japan is the runner-up. The competition for the World Cup this year is more intense with the return of the "big sister" women's team of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nong-doi-tuyen-nu-viet-nam-doi-dau-nhat-ban-va-an-do-boc-tham-asian-cup-gay-can-185250729171257721.htm