Vietnam women's futsal team begins journey to conquer World Cup ticket

At 4:00 p.m. on May 7, the Vietnamese women's futsal team will begin their journey to win a ticket to the World Cup in the opening match of Group B against the Hong Kong women's futsal team (China).

Vietnam women's futsal team ready for the opening match. (Photo: VFF)

The 2025 Asian Women's Futsal Championship will take place from May 7 to 18 in Inner Mongolia (China) with the participation of 12 teams, divided into 3 groups. In Group B, in addition to the Vietnamese and Hong Kong women's teams, there are also the Philippines and Iran women's futsal teams.

This continental tournament also serves as the qualifying round for the 2025 Women's Futsal World Cup (held for the first time, taking place in November this year in the Philippines). The 2025 Asian Women's Futsal Championship will be played in a round-robin format with the top two teams from each group (3 groups) and the two best third-placed teams advancing to the quarter-finals. The two quarter-final winners and the winner of the Asian third-place match will have three spots at the 2025 Women's Futsal World Cup finals in mid-November in the Philippines. If the Philippines reaches the semi-finals, the remaining three teams will automatically qualify for the 2025 Women's Futsal World Cup.

The Vietnamese women's futsal team is currently ranked 11th in the FIFA rankings, compared to Hong Kong (China) at 29th and the Philippines at 55th, so coach Nguyen Dinh Hoang and his team have a wide open chance of advancing to the next round with Iran. Notably, the Vietnamese women's futsal team defeated Hong Kong 2-1 at the 2013 Asain Indoor Games.

Coming to this year's tournament, coach Nguyen Dinh Hoang's team aims to win a ticket to the 2025 Women's Futsal World Cup.

In theory, winning one of the top two positions in Group B is not beyond the reach of the Vietnamese women's futsal team. Because 2/3 of the opponents in the group stage are much weaker.

The Hong Kong women's team is currently ranked 29th in the world . The Philippines is ranked 55th in the world and lost to the Vietnamese women's futsal team 1-6 at the 2024 Southeast Asian Women's Futsal Championship.

Defending champion Iran has won the Asian Women's Futsal Championship twice in a row and is currently ranked 9th in the world. This is considered the most formidable opponent of the Vietnamese women's futsal team in the race for the top two spots in the group.

The Vietnamese women's futsal team in Group B will meet Hong Kong (May 7), the Philippines (May 9) and Iran (May 11).

Source: https://bvhttdl.gov.vn/tuyen-futsal-nu-viet-nam-bat-dau-hanh-trinh-chinh-phuc-ve-du-world-cup-20250507143420092.htm