ASEAN Cup 2026 will take place from July 24 to August 26 with the participation of 10 teams, divided into two groups. The group stage will be played in a round-robin format, each team playing two home matches and two away matches. The top two teams in each group will win the right to enter the semi-finals.
According to the draw results, the Vietnamese team is in Group A with Indonesia, Singapore, Cambodia and Timor Leste. Meanwhile, Group B includes Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, Myanmar and Laos.
According to the schedule, the Vietnamese national team will open the ASEAN Cup 2026 with a confrontation with Timor Leste at Chonburi Stadium (Thailand) on July 24. After that, Quang Hai and his teammates will meet Singapore on July 31st, Indonesia on August 3rd and close the group stage with a match against Cambodia on August 7th.
Among the 4 opponents, Indonesia is considered the biggest challenge for the Vietnamese team. The two teams have met in the group stage of the previous ASEAN Cup at Viet Tri stadium and the upcoming rematch is likely to directly affect the competition for the top spot in Group A.
Singapore and Cambodia are also opponents who can create surprises if the Vietnamese team cannot maintain stability.
Before the opening day, the Vietnamese team had a long preparation process with training sessions at home and abroad. Coach Kim Sang-sik and his team played 3 friendly matches with Korean clubs to review forces and test tactics.
In the general rehearsal match against Myanmar at Thai Nguyen stadium, the Vietnamese team won 4-0. Three naturalized players, Nguyen Xuan Son, Hoang Hen and Tai Loc, all left their mark, helping the coaching staff have more basis to complete the squad before entering the journey to defend the Southeast Asian championship.
