Vietnam is in same group with Laos and Philippines at the AFF U23 Championship

The highly anticipated tournament, which will be hosted by the Football Association of Thailand, will also serve as a prelude for the upcoming AFC U23 Asian Cup 2024 Qualifiers and the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou 2022 football competition, both taking place this September, to see who the frontrunners will be as the region’s top football talents ready themselves before these competitions.

The Official Draw ceremony took place in Bangkok, Thailand today, with proceedings conducted by AFF President, Major General Khiev Sameth, Laos Football Federation President, Mr Viphet Sihachakr and President of Football Association of Thailand, Police General Dr Somyot Poompanmoung, in the presence of representatives from the member associations and team officials virtually.

The 10 participating teams have been divided into three groups. Host Thailand find themselves in Group A paired alongside Cambodia, Brunei Darussalam and Myanmar, while defending champions Vietnam will take on Philippines and Laos in Group C. Group B is made up by Timor-Leste, Malaysia and Indonesia.

The top team of each group will progress to the semi-finals alongside the best runner-up from the Group Stage, while the winners from the single leg semi-finals will compete in the Final on 26 August 2023.

“We are pleased to unveil the dates and team groupings for this year’s AFF U23 Championship which is not only an integral part of the AFF competitions but also an important platform to prepare the next generation of our football players to transit into the senior national teams,” said AFF President Major General Khiev Sameth.

“It has always been paramount in our minds, to make this a permanent fixture in our competitions calendar and we take immense pride in staging the Championship again this year. I am reflecting the deep appreciation of the AFF Council by expressing my profound gratitude to the Football Association of Thailand for their partnership in hosting the tournament in Chonburi.”

President of the Football Association of Thailand, Police General Dr Somyot Poompanmoung, said, “We are thrilled to host the AFF U23 Championship 2023, which offers a remarkable stage for our young aspiring future stars to display their skills and compete at the highest level. As one of the premier youth tournaments in the region, we are proud to bring this event to Chonburi, so our fans can experience the beauty of Thailand and bring home many unforgettable memories. We look forward to welcoming the teams and delivering a competitive and memorable tournament come August.”

“We are excited that the dates of the AFF U23 Championship 2023 have now been confirmed and look forward to working with AFF and Football Association of Thailand to bring the best of under-23 football to fans from across the region. With over 4.6 million social media impressions and 26 million video views across multiple social media channels in 2022, the AFF U23 Championship has demonstrated its affinity with fans, and we look to build upon the promising viewership and engagement figures seen during last year’s edition,” said Malcolm Thorpe, Managing Director, Southeast Asia at SPORTFIVE.

The global sports marketing agency is the exclusive commercial representative for the AFF U23 Championship 2023 and oversees all commercial and media rights, including sponsorship engagements and brand partnerships.

The newly launched official social media channels for the AFF U23 Championship are now live. Football fans from across the region can follow the tournament on Facebook and TikTok (@affu23championship), and Instagram (@affu23championshipofficial), to access a wide variety of engaging content leading up to this year’s tournament happening in August.