A number of young Vietnamese players are heading to Thailand to compete.

The Vietnam U16 futsal team has set off to take part in the 2025 Southeast Asian U16 Futsal Championship.

On the afternoon of December 20, the futsal team of Vietnam's U16 squad departed for Thailand to join the 2025 Southeast Asian U16 Futsal Championship. This tournament is the first ever organized by the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) for the U16 age group, providing an important official platform for youth futsal in the region.

Prior to this, the team gathered for training starting November 16 at the Chanh Hung ward futsal arena (Ho Chi Minh City) with 20 called-up players, led by head coach Trinh Huu Thanh. After more than a month of preparation, the coaching staff finalized a 14-player roster before departure, ensuring team stability and competitiveness for the tournament.

The 2025 Southeast Asian U16 Futsal Championship features five teams: Thailand (host), Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar, and Brunei. The teams will compete in a single round-robin format to determine the top two finalists, while the third and fourth place teams will contest the third-place playoff.

According to the schedule, Vietnam’s U16 futsal team will face Indonesia at 11:30 AM on December 24, Myanmar at 5:30 PM on December 25, Thailand at 6:00 PM on December 26, and Brunei at 11:00 AM on December 27. All matches will be held at the Nonthaburi Arena in Thailand.

With thorough preparation and clear objectives, the Vietnam U16 futsal team aims to gain international match experience while demonstrating the strength of Vietnamese youth futsal in the regional arena.

This is the first time the ASEAN Football Federation has organized futsal competitions for the U16 and U19 age groups, marking a significant development for youth futsal in the region. This event opens substantial opportunities for young players, as Southeast Asia currently lacks an official youth futsal platform. Previously, the only youth-level tournament was the AFC U20 Futsal Championship organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), which has been suspended since 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic and has yet to resume.