U23 Vietnam closed the group stage of the 2026 AFC U23 Championship with a 1-0 victory over U23 Saudi Arabia. This result helped coach Kim Sang-sik's team complete the group stage with a perfect record, winning first place in Group A and becoming 1 of the first 3 teams to enter the quarter-finals.
Previously, U23 Vietnam successively defeated U23 Jordan with a score of 2-0 and defeated U23 Kyrgyzstan 2-1. With 9 absolute points after 3 matches, "Golden Star Warriors" showed stability in both playing style and fighting spirit. Being at the top of Group A also helped U23 Vietnam avoid a strong opponent in the knockout round.
In the match at the same time, U23 Jordan won 1-0 against U23 Kyrgyzstan. This helped the West Asian representative finish in second place in Group A with 6 points and be in the top 8 strongest teams.
Previously, the first team to reach the quarter-finals early was U23 Japan. After the first two matches in Group B, "Green Samurai" won all matches with 6 points, successively defeating U23 UAE 3-0 and U23 Syria 5-0. Superior head-to-head record helped U23 Japan firmly hold the top spot in the group, despite the result of the last match against U23 Qatar.
The situation in Group B shows that U23 UAE and U23 Syria - two teams with 3 points - will face each other directly to compete for the remaining tickets. Meanwhile, U23 Qatar was eliminated early and no longer has a chance to compete.
Thus, as of now, the quarter-finals of the 2026 AFC U23 Championship have identified the first 3 teams as U23 Vietnam, U23 Jordan and U23 Japan. U23 Vietnam will not have to face U23 Japan right in the quarter-finals.
The remaining slots in the quarter-finals will be decided after the final rounds of the group stage, promising to bring many changes.
