This is the first time U17 Vietnam has participated in the world arena. Coach Cristiano Roland's team has passed the group stage of the 2026 AFC U17 Championship with 6 points, including 2 wins against U17 Yemen (1-0), U17 UAE (3-2) and 1 defeat to U17 South Korea (1-4).
In the letter, AFC President Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa wrote: "I am very pleased to send my most respectful congratulations to you (VFF President Tran Quoc Tuan - PV) as well as the Vietnam Football Federation on the excellent performance of the team at the U17 Asian Cup finals - Saudi Arabia 2026, the peak of which is the ticket to participate in the U17 World Cup 2026 finals in Qatar.
The spirit of passion and dedication that the team shows at the tournament is truly commendable. I wish U17 Vietnam the best in the preparation process and believe that you will be proud to represent Asia in the world arena".
The AFC President also sent praise to the coaching staff and U17 Vietnam players for this impressive achievement. At the same time, the Asian Football Confederation affirmed the high recognition of AFC for Vietnamese youth football.
Returning to the 2026 AFC U17 Championship finals, U17 Vietnam stopped in the quarterfinals after a 0-3 defeat to U17 Australia. This is a regrettable result, because coach Roland's team once defeated this opponent at the Southeast Asian Championship half a month ago.
Returning home, U17 Vietnam will have a fairly long time to prepare for a new journey at the 2026 U17 World Cup. It is expected that the coaching staff will continue to review and adjust the force.
According to the plan, the U17 World Cup group stage draw will take place on May 21 in Zurich (Switzerland).
Up to this point, FIFA has identified 38 participating teams. The Asia region alone has 9 participation slots: U17 Qatar (host), U17 Saudi Arabia, U17 Tajikistan, U17 Australia, U17 Uzbekistan, U17 Japan, U17 China, U17 Korea and U17 Vietnam.
