The Thai national coach aims to reclaim the AFF championship from the Vietnam team

The head coach of Thailand's women's futsal team confirmed their goal to secure the 2026 Southeast Asian women's futsal title at home.

The ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) held a press conference ahead of the 2026 Southeast Asian Women's Futsal Championship. The event took place at Seemathani Hotel in Nakhon Ratchasima on February 23. Thanathorn Santhaprasit, head coach of Thailand's women's futsal team, along with representatives from the other two teams in Group A, Indonesia and Malaysia, participated. The tournament will be hosted at Terminal 21 Korat Shopping Mall from February 24 to March 2, 2026.

Coach Thanathorn Santhaprasit stated: "We are fully prepared for this tournament. After setbacks at the World Championship and the Southeast Asian Games, we want to reclaim the Southeast Asian title. The pressure is immense because we missed the SEA Games in an unfortunate way, and now playing at home only increases that pressure. But our players are ready both physically and mentally."

"For the new players, most are still quite fresh to the team. Everyone is performing well within the tactical system. The only remaining issue is their mental state during actual matches. They need to try to perform as well as they do in training sessions, because everyone has shown great performance during practice."

Also speaking at the meeting, Vietnam's women's futsal head coach, Mr. Nguyễn Đình Hoàng, confirmed that the team has prepared thoroughly despite facing many challenges: “We want to improve and need a continuous competitive phase. Tournaments like this are very important. The team had 4 weeks of preparation along with a training camp in Japan, so the entire squad has worked very hard and is ready for the highest goal,”he said.

According to the draw results, Vietnam was placed in a tough group with the Philippines, Myanmar, and Australia. The coach evaluated that all opponents have quality and have shown clear progress:"This year we are in a very strong group. It includes the Philippines, Myanmar, and Australia. All teams are of high quality, and we have great respect for them."

“The schedule is very tight as we have to play 3 matches in 3 days. Therefore, fitness and recovery ability will be key factors. We are confident but also understand that defending the title is not easy, as women's futsal in Southeast Asia is developing rapidly,”emphasized Coach Nguyễn Đình Hoàng.

Match schedule of Vietnam women's futsal team at the 2026 Southeast Asian Women's Futsal Championship

Vietnam women's futsal team begins their journey to defend the AFF championship