U23 Vietnam is in the number 1 seed group in the 2026 Asian Qualifiers

* Vietnam women's team plays friendly match with German team

With good results in the last three U23 Asian tournaments, the Vietnam U23 team is ranked in the number 1 seed group in the 2026 U23 Asian Qualifiers.

The Vietnam U23 team reached the quarter-finals of the 2024 AFC U23 Championship and stopped after losing to Iraq U23 with a score of 0-1. Source: VFF

According to information from VFF, U23 Vietnam ranked 5th in Asia (after Uzbekistan, Japan, Iraq and South Korea) and was placed in seed group number 1 - the group for 11 teams with the best cumulative achievements in the three most recent U23 Asian tournaments (2020, 2022, 2024).

Being in the top seed group reflects the fairly stable performance of Vietnamese youth football over the past many years, most recently reaching the quarter-finals at the 2024 tournament.

In addition, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced plans to hold the draw ceremony for the 2026 AFC U23 Championship Qualifiers on May 29 at the AFC headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The 2026 AFC U23 Championship qualifiers bring together 44 national U23 teams, divided into 11 groups, competing in a round-robin format at a centralized location from September 1-9.

The 11 group winners and the four best runners-up will advance to the Finals, to be held in Saudi Arabia in 2026. The host team of the Finals will receive a bye-bye to the qualifiers.

The draw mechanism is conducted according to the following principle: Teams are divided into 4 seeding groups based on the scoring system approved by AFC.

In addition, the 11 host nations are placed in a separate pot (Hosts Pot) and are drawn in advance to ensure that each host is placed in a different pot. The host teams will be allocated positions in the group, corresponding to their seeding.

The list of 11 countries hosting the tournament includes: Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar, Qatar, Tajikistan, Thailand, UAE and Vietnam.

The countries in the top seed group before the 2026 AFC U23 Championship Qualifiers include: Uzbekistan, Japan, Iraq, South Korea, Vietnam, Australia, Qatar, Thailand, Jordan, Tajikistan and UAE.

* The Vietnamese women's team will play a friendly match with Werder Bremen women's club (Germany) in Hanoi to prepare for important tournaments in 2025.

The Vietnam women's team will have a quality friendly match with Werder Bremen women's club. Photo: VFF

The friendly match will take place on May 16 at Hang Day Stadium and will be broadcast live on VFF Channel and FPT Play. This is an activity to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the Federal Republic of Germany.

At the same time, the match also demonstrated the active preparation of Vietnamese women's football before the 2026 Asian Women's Championship qualifiers. In particular, playing against a traditional German team like Werder Bremen promises to bring valuable experiences to the whole team.

Werder Bremen Women's Club competes in the Frauen-Bundesliga, one of the top women's football leagues in Europe and the world. The team is based in the city of Bremen and is known for its modern and technically sound style of play.

With a squad that includes many talented young players and rich international experience, Werder Bremen will be a quality opponent for the Vietnam women's team.

Previously, the Vietnamese women's team lost narrowly to the German women's team 1-2 in a friendly match to prepare for the 2023 Women's World Cup.

The Vietnam women's team will gather on May 6 at the Vietnam Youth Football Training Center (Hanoi) with 25 players. Under the guidance of coach Mai Duc Chung, the Vietnamese women's players will have 10 days to prepare for the friendly match with Werder Bremen women's club.

Previously, on May 12, the Vietnamese women's team was scheduled to have a friendly match with the Ho Chi Minh City women's club, which is currently training in Hanoi.

Source: https://baophuyen.vn/the-thao/202505/u23-viet-nam-thuoc-nhom-hat-giong-so-1-tai-vong-loai-giai-chau-a-2026-5f229ce/