Indonesian Newspaper: 'Vietnam is the Southeast Asian Model'

Indonesian media stirred debate by stating that Vietnam serves as the Southeast Asian benchmark, whereas Indonesia and Malaysia face difficulties competing without heavily depending on naturalized athletes.

Indonesian media recently published an attention-grabbing article asserting that the Vietnamese national team is becoming the “standard” for Southeast Asian football, while Indonesia and Malaysia find it hard to contend without a significant number of naturalized players.

According to Superball, Vietnam's football confidence stems from an impressive run of achievements over the past two years. After winning the 2024 AFF Cup, coach Kim Sang-sik’s team has maintained consistent performance at both youth and senior levels.

In mid-2025, Vietnam U23 claimed the title at the Southeast Asian U23 Championship held in Indonesia. In a thrilling final, the red-shirted team defeated the host nation 1-0. Not stopping there, Vietnam also secured the SEA Games gold medal after an incredible comeback against Thailand in the final, overturning a 0-2 deficit to win 3-2.

At the 2026 AFC U23 Championship, this Southeast Asian representative continued to impress by finishing third overall. These consecutive achievements at both youth and senior levels have led to Vietnam being regarded as the most stable team with the strongest domestic foundation in the region.

Notably, most of Vietnam’s success comes from players trained domestically. Although there are some Vietnamese-origin players competing abroad, the naturalization strategy is not as widespread as in Indonesia or Malaysia.

Indonesian media suggests that without a squad of European and South American origin players, Indonesia and Malaysia would find it difficult to compete fairly with Vietnam at present. This viewpoint has sparked much debate in the region, especially as Indonesia possesses a large pool of mixed-heritage players overseas and actively promotes naturalization.

Meanwhile, Malaysian football has recently been embroiled in controversies related to foreign-origin player registrations. The issue has even escalated into a major scandal and is currently under review by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

Thus, the competition among the top three Southeast Asian football nations is not only about on-field skills but also revolves around long-term development strategies: investing in homegrown talent or leveraging naturalized players. Currently, from the Indonesian media perspective, Vietnam is seen as having the most solid foundation in the region.