HOT: Vietnam U17's World Cup ticket competition faces a major upheaval

Right before the 2026 AFC U17 Championship is about to kick off, North Korea U17 plans to pull out of the competition.

According to some credible sources, North Korea U17 has decided not to participate in the 2026 AFC U17 Championship, even though the tournament will start early next month. This means Group D of the AFC U17 Championship now only has three teams: Uzbekistan, Australia, and India. The AFC has not yet officially commented on the matter.

Given the tournament is about to begin, it is very difficult to add any team to Group D to replace North Korea U17. Furthermore, the number of teams in one group does not affect other groups since only the top two teams from each group advance to the quarter-finals, without comparing results across groups. Therefore, keeping the group with three teams is entirely feasible.

Based on the draw results for the AFC U17 Championship Saudi Arabia 2026, Vietnam U17 is in Group C alongside South Korea, UAE, and Yemen. The tournament is scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia from May 7 to May 24, 2026, with 16 participating teams.

At the Championship, teams play a single round-robin in each group to select the top 8 teams with the best results for the quarter-finals, also securing qualification for the FIFA U-17 World Cup Qatar 2026. This will be a crucial opportunity for Vietnam U17 to further assert its position and accumulate experience on the continental stage.

During the qualifiers, Vietnam U17 played diligently, demonstrating a determined spirit and professional progress by securing all 15 points, scoring 30 goals, and conceding none, entering the Championship as group winners. The positive results in the group stage helped the team achieve the goal of joining the continent's elite groups.

According to the plan, after winning the 2026 Southeast Asia U17 Championship, the entire Vietnam U17 squad of 39 members will return home on April 26, expected to land at 18:15 at the international terminal of Noi Bai Airport. The team will continue preparations for the 2026 AFC U17 Championship at VFF. The plan is for the team to depart for Saudi Arabia on May 3.

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