On the evening of July 29, U23 Vietnam defeated the host team U23 Indonesia in the final match of the 2025 Southeast Asian U23 tournament, thereby winning the championship for the third consecutive time in this playground.
For U23 Indonesia, this is considered a bitter defeat for them, because this team is expected to be crowned champion, especially after defeating U23 Thailand in the semi-finals. At the same time, the tournament is held right at home.
In the plan, the U23 Southeast Asian tournament is considered a stepping stone to the Asian qualifiers as well as the SEA Games.
However, Mr. Donald Vanenburg will not be able to lead the U23 Indonesia to compete in the 33rd SEA Games in Thailand later this year.
After the match, sharing on Indonesia's Bola newspaper, coach Donald Vanenburg said: "For the 33rd SEA Games, I was informed that it was not a tournament under my management.
I will coach other tournaments and try to win. Therefore, the 33rd SEA Games is not my responsibility".
The above information was also confirmed by President of the Indonesian Football Federation (PSSI) Mr. Erick Thohir in Bola.
Accordingly, Mr. Erick Thohir affirmed that coach Donald Vanenburg will continue to be the head coach of the Indonesian U23 team for the 2026 Asian U23 qualifiers.
Meanwhile, with the 33rd SEA Games taking place in Thailand, the role of captain of the U23 Indonesia team is still left open.
