According to the latest FIFA rankings, the Vietnamese women's national team is currently ranked 36th in the world. This is also the 10th consecutive time the team has participated in the Asian Cup finals - proof of the stability and progress of the country's women's football over the years. However, the best achievement of the Vietnamese women's national team in this arena has only stopped at the knockout stage.
In this year's finals, the Vietnamese women's team is in Group C with India, Taiwan (China) and Japan. According to the schedule, coach Mai Duc Chung's team will successively face India (March 4), Taiwan (China) (March 7) before facing Japan (March 10). This is considered a highly competitive group, especially with the participation of the Japanese team - one of the powers of Asian women's football and a former world champion.
Coach Mai Duc Chung frankly acknowledged that Group C is a big challenge for the Vietnamese women's team. However, the experienced coach affirmed that the whole team did not enter the tournament with a hesitant attitude. According to him, both India and Taiwan (China) have made significant progress in recent times. The immediate goal of the Vietnamese women's team is to score points against these two opponents in order to create an advantage in the race for a ticket to continue. The confrontation with Japan is also considered an opportunity for players to verify their bravery, accumulate top-level competition experience and improve their expertise.
The 2026 Asian Cup is identified by the coaching staff as an important stepping stone in the roadmap towards the 2027 World Cup.
In the past, the Vietnamese women's team has participated in the Asian Cup many times since the first time in 1999 but has not been able to go as far as expected. The team only passed the group stage twice, in 2014 and 2022. Notably, the achievement at the 2022 tournament helped the Vietnamese women's team win the right to participate in the 2023 Women's World Cup after an emotional play-off round.
Participating in the World Cup for the first time, Vietnamese players have not been able to score points when successively facing world-class opponents such as the USA, Netherlands and Portugal.
The determination of the team is clearly shown in the preparation phase for the 2026 Asian Cup when the players shortened the Lunar New Year holiday to gather early. The coaching staff said that the whole team has returned to training from the 2nd day of Tet to maintain physical foundation and form before the tournament.
Looking from a professional perspective, editor Nguyen Ngoc Tran - who has accompanied the Vietnamese women's national team at the 2023 World Cup and major tournaments - shared: "Compared to the previous period, the current Vietnamese women's national team has a better balance between experience and youth. Players who played at the 2023 World Cup have significantly improved their competitive psychology as well as their ability to adapt to high intensity. If they maintain focus and take good advantage of opportunities against direct competitors in the group stage, the Vietnamese women's national team can completely aim for the goal of passing the knockout round, thereby nurturing hopes of winning a ticket to participate in the 2027 World Cup".
The combination of experienced players and the next generation is expected to bring the necessary depth of the squad for the long journey ahead. With a solid professional foundation, along with a fighting spirit that has been proven through many major tournaments, the Vietnamese women's team is aiming for the 2026 Asian Cup with the determination to create surprises and continue to write new imprints in the continental arena.
