Vietnam holds a superior record in the AFC U23 Asian Cup, having secured eight victories in the tournament's finals. These wins include a 1-0 triumph over Australia, a 3-3 draw (5-3 penalty shootout win) against Iraq, and a 2-2 draw (4-3 penalty shootout win) against Qatar in 2018. Subsequent victories were a 2-0 win over Malaysia in 2022, a 3-1 win against Kuwait, and another 2-0 victory over Malaysia in 2024. Most recently, Vietnam defeated Jordan 2-0 and Kyrgyzstan 2-1 in 2026. Six of these victories were achieved in regular time, with two decided by penalty shootouts.

Midfielder Nguyen Thai Son points to the national flag after Vietnam's victory over Kyrgyzstan in the second match of Group A, AFC U23 Asian Cup finals, at King Abdullah Sports City Hall, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on 9/1. *Photo: AFC*

In Southeast Asia, Thailand and Indonesia both share the second position with three wins each in the tournament. Thailand's victories include a 5-0 win over Bahrain in 2020, a 3-0 win against Malaysia in 2022, and a 2-0 win over Iraq in 2024.

Indonesia has participated in the finals only once, in the 2024 edition. During that tournament, they successively beat Australia 1-0, Jordan 4-1, and South Korea 2-2 (11-10 penalty shootout win). In the same year, Indonesia lost 0-2 to Uzbekistan in the semifinals and then suffered a 1-2 defeat against Iraq in the third-place playoff, a match that determined a spot at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Among the remaining teams, only Malaysia has registered one win: a 1-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in the 2018 group stage. Myanmar is the only other Southeast Asian team to have participated in the AFC U23 Asian Cup finals, specifically the first edition in 2013, but they lost all three matches. This means that, excluding Vietnam, other Southeast Asian teams have collectively secured a total of seven victories in the AFC U23 Asian Cup finals.

Vietnam's standing in this tournament is also the best in the region. The team reached the final in 2018, where they lost 1-2 to Uzbekistan in extra time in Changzhou, China. Indonesia ranks second, having advanced to the semifinals in 2024. Malaysia and Thailand follow, each reaching the quarterfinals once, in 2018 and 2020, respectively.

When considering the total points accumulated by teams, excluding penalty shootouts in the knockout rounds, Vietnam ranks ninth continent-wide in this tournament with 25 points, just above UAE's 23 points. Thailand has 13 points, Indonesia 7, Malaysia 4, and Myanmar 0. Vietnam's total points (25) exceed the combined points of the remaining Southeast Asian teams (24).

According to these statistics, South Korea leads with 73 points, followed by Japan with 67 points. However, in terms of titles, Japan is the only team to have won twice. South Korea, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Uzbekistan have each won the championship once.

Vietnam is on the verge of setting a record for winning three matches in a single AFC U23 Asian Cup edition, excluding penalty shootouts, if they defeat Saudi Arabia in the final Group A match on the evening of 12/1. Should they win, Coach Kim Sang-sik's team will top the group and face either UAE or Syria in the quarterfinals.

Xuan Binh