Shocking: U22 Singapore eliminated from SEA Games 33

A shock has just come to Singaporean fans when the country's U22 team was not included in the list of teams participating in the 33rd SEA Games in Thailand by the Singapore Olympic Committee (SNOC).

U22 Singapore will likely be absent from SEA Games 33 - Photo: NCA

The reason is that the Singapore U22 team is not capable enough to compete for medals. At the 2023 SEA Games, Singapore U22 was eliminated from the group stage with a poor performance: one draw and three losses, the worst of which was a 0-7 defeat to Malaysia .

This was Singapore's biggest defeat at the SEA Games since the age-restricted tournament was introduced in 2001. The defeat also marked a decade in which Singapore men's football did not advance beyond the group stage of the SEA Games.

After the 2023 SEA Games, the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) has made 10 recommendations to improve performance in the following tournaments, including creating conditions for young players to play more in the Singapore Premier League (SPL) .

However, FAS's efforts have yet to yield results as U22 Singapore is still considered too weak and not competitive enough in regional competitions. At the recently concluded U23 Southeast Asian Championship, Singapore did not send a team to participate.

However, new FAS President Forrest Li believes that this is not the final decision. Mr. Forrest Li said that he will work with SNOC and the selection committee to try to bring the men's football team to the 2025 SEA Games.

"We need to give the young players a proper playground and the SEA Games is a great opportunity to compete with teams in the region. We understand there may be some concerns, as the team did not achieve good results at the last SEA Games, but from the FAS' perspective, we will do our best," Channel News Asia quoted Mr. Li as saying.

If they do not attend the 33rd SEA Games, Singapore men's football will be absent from this tournament for the first time since 1969.

At the 33rd SEA Games, the Singapore sports delegation is expected to have a total of 762 athletes, competing in 42 sports. This is the largest number of athletes participating in the SEA Games in the history of Singapore sports.

NOSTALGIA

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/soc-u22-singapore-bi-loai-khoi-sea-games-33-20250807055733243.htm