According to FPT Play - the owner of the broadcasting rights for the 2025 U23 Southeast Asian tournament, the tournament organizers announced that the match between U23 Vietnam and U23 Indonesia will use VAR technology. This is a necessary decision to support the referee team in sensitive situations as well as the validity of the goal.
Previously, a problem occurred in the semi-final match between U23 Vietnam and U23 Philippines on the evening of July 25. Accordingly, Malaysian referee Muhammad Usaid Jamal mistakenly gave the Philippines player a red card.
The slow-motion television showed that in the 90+5 minute, center back Noah Leddel (number 2) made a mistake in pushing Quoc Viet down in an attack close to the penalty area. However, instead of punishing Noah Leddel, the main referee dismissed Jaime Rosquillo (No. 14) - who did not participate in the above incident.
Because the tournament does not apply VAR, the referee's decision on the field is considered final.
This incident once again shows the importance of VAR technology in supporting referees. In particular, given the importance of a final match, using VAR is necessary.
The 2025 U23 Southeast Asian final between U23 Vietnam and U23 Indonesia will take place at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium at 8:00 p.m. on July 29.
