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Vietnam ease into final

Wed, 19 Aug, 2026

Vietnam ease into final

Hanoi: Title holders Vietnam will take on Thailand in the final of the ASEAN Championship 2026 after Kim Sang-sik’s side registered a 2-0 win over Malaysia in Hanoi on Wednesday to complete a 4-0 aggregate semi-final win.

Substitute Nguyen Xuan Son scored in the 62nd and 89th minutes as Vietnam finally found a way past goalkeeper Azri Ghani, who gave the Malaysians hope of an unlikely comeback with a performance that frustrated the home side throughout the clash at My Dinh Stadium.
 
Vietnam will travel to Bangkok to face the Thais in the opening leg on Saturday with the return to be played in Hanoi on Wednesday.

Preview: S-finals (2nd leg)

Mon, 17 Aug, 2026

Preview: S-finals (2nd leg)

Kuala Lumpur: Vietnam and Thailand will look to finish the job in the ASEAN Championship 2026 semi-finals second leg to book a repeat of the previous two finals.

Holders Vietnam and Thailand are on course to reach yet another decider after picking up first leg victories against Malaysia (2-0) and Singapore (3-1) respectively.

S-final (1st leg): Malaysia 0-2 Vietnam

Sun, 16 Aug, 2026

S-final (1st leg): Malaysia 0-2 Vietnam

Kuala Lumpur: Nguyen Xuan Son’s diving header and a late own goal from Faris Danish mean Vietnam hold the advantage in the second leg of their ASEAN Championship 2026 semi-final after Kim Sang-sik’s side secured a 2-0 win over Malaysia on Sunday.

Xuan Son scored in spectacular fashion in the fifth minute of first-half stoppage time to give the defending champions the lead before the unfortunate Faris steered the ball into his own net with only four minutes remaining.

The teams will meet again in Hanoi on Wednesday with Vietnam attempting to win back-to-back titles for the first time. The winner will face either Thailand or Singapore, with the Thais holding a 3-1 lead from their first leg played on Saturday.

PS: Adelaide United (AUS) 0-2 Cong An Ha Noi FC (VIE)

Tue, 11 Aug, 2026

PS: Adelaide United (AUS) 0-2 Cong An Ha Noi FC (VIE)

Adelaide: Vietnam’s Cong An Ha Noi FC defeated Adelaide United of Australia 2-0 to secure their spot in the AFC Champions League Elite 2026/27™ League Stage on Tuesday.

Alexandre Polking’s V League 1 champions kept Adelaide quiet throughout with goals from Henen and Koko sealing their place in the draw in Kuala Lumpur on August 18.

Group A: Vietnam, Singapore advance

Fri, 07 Aug, 2026

Group A: Vietnam, Singapore advance

Hanoi: Vietnam confirmed their progress to the semi-finals of the ASEAN Championship 2026 on Friday with a 3-1 win over Cambodia as Singapore also advanced after securing a 1-1 draw with Indonesia to take second place in Group A.

The defending champions topped the group with their third win in four group matches, finishing two points ahead of the Singaporeans, who took second place with eight points, one ahead of Indonesia.

Group A: Vietnam sizzle against Indonesia; victory for Cambodia

Mon, 03 Aug, 2026

Group A: Vietnam sizzle against Indonesia; victory for Cambodia

Cibinong: Defending champions Vietnam claimed a statement 3-0 win over hosts Indonesia in the ASEAN Championship 2026 on Monday as Kim Sang-sik’s side moved to the top of the Group A standings with one round of matches remaining.

Goals from Nguyen Van Vi and Nguyen Hai Long gave the title holders a two-goal lead inside the first 15 minutes and Nguyen Xuan Son completed the win when he slotted home in the 71st minute to take Vietnam into pole position in the standings.

Vietnam move ahead of Singapore on goal-difference while Indonesia drop to third, one point adrift of the lead duo ahead of their clash with the Singaporeans on Friday. Vietnam will play Cambodia in the final group match with the top two advancing to the semi-finals.

JDT nab Stoichkov; Ha Noi add Jung

Sun, 02 Aug, 2026

JDT nab Stoichkov; Ha Noi add Jung

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian champions Johor Darul Ta’zim have further strengthened their squad with the arrival of forward Juan Diego Molina Martinez - also known as Stoichkov.

Head coach Xisco Munoz can look to the 32-year-old former Granada CF player to boost the squad for their domestic competitions as well as the AFC Champions League Elite 2026/27™after their historic run to the quarter-finals last season.

Heo joins Bayern academy; Sailors add Mance

Sat, 01 Aug, 2026

Heo joins Bayern academy; Sailors add Mance

Kuala Lumpur: Korea Republic goalkeeper Heo Jae-won has secured a move to Bayern Munich’s academy, while Singapore champions Lion City Sailors have strengthened their attacking ranks with the signing of Antonio Mance.

Clubs in Japan, Vietnam, Qatar and Korea Republic were also active with Taito Kanda, Iuri Castillo, Kalvin Luong, Abdullah Al Sulaiti, Ruben Macedo and Kim Min-ho completing moves.

Group A: Vietnam, Singapore share spoils; Indonesia power on

Fri, 31 Jul, 2026

Group A: Vietnam, Singapore share spoils; Indonesia power on

Hanoi: Singapore frustrated defending champions Vietnam to draw 0-0 with Kim Sang-sik’s side in Hanoi on Friday to remain in pole position in Group A of the ASEAN Championship 2026 standings as Indonesia picked up a second victory with a 3-0 win over Timor-Leste.

The Vietnamese dominated throughout at My Dinh National Stadium but were unable to find a way past Singapore goalkeeper Izwan Mahbud as the title holders struggled to turn their superiority into clear-cut chances.

Preview: MD3

Thu, 30 Jul, 2026

Preview: MD3

Kuala Lumpur: The race is set to intensify as teams in the ASEAN Championship 2026 look to strengthen their claim for semi-final spots while others will be aiming to reignite their campaign when matches resume on Friday.

Singapore and Malaysia lead Group A and Group B respectively but with plenty of matches still to be played, a lot could change in the coming days as the-AFC.com looks at what’s in store in the next round of matches.

AFC Grassroots Day 2026 unites Asia’s football communities – Part 3

Wed, 22 Jul, 2026

AFC Grassroots Day 2026 unites Asia’s football communities – Part 3

Kuala Lumpur: The 13th Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Grassroots Day brought communities together across the Continent as 45 Member Associations (MAs) celebrated the beautiful game and engaged thousands of participants in a showcase of football's power to inspire, connect and include.

Held annually on May 23, this year's events once again coincided with FIFA's World Football Week, reinforcing the AFC's support for the United Nations' Football for the Goals initiative and its shared commitment to advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through football.
 
Join us at the-AFC.com for the third and final part of a series (Part 1 can be found here and Part 2 is here) that highlights how MAs embraced the AFC Grassroots Day 2026 with creativity and enthusiasm.

Group A: Winning starts for Vietnam, Singapore

Fri, 24 Jul, 2026

Group A: Winning starts for Vietnam, Singapore

Chonburi: Vietnam made a winning start to their defence of the ASEAN Championship title on Friday as Kim Sang-sik’s side handed Timor-Leste a 7-0 defeat in Group A in Chonburi while Singapore registered a last-gasp 2-1 win over Cambodia in Phnom Penh.

Nguyen Dinh Bac scored a hat-trick for the three-time champions while Do Hoang Hen struck twice and Nguyen Xuan Son was also on target before an own goal by Liam Farrugia completed the scoring.