KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysia will face a stern challenge in their quest to win the inaugural FIFA Asean Cup after being drawn alongside hosts Indonesia, India and Singapore in Group A of the Division One tournament.
The competition, which runs from Sept 23 to Oct 3, pits Malaysia against one of the tournament’s toughest groups, with Indonesia enjoying home advantage and India adding further strength to the field.
Group B features regional powerhouses Vietnam and Thailand, alongside the Philippines and Pakistan.
Meanwhile, the Division Two tournament, to be staged in Hong Kong, sees the hosts drawn with Myanmar and Brunei Darussalam in Group A, while Cambodia, Laos and Timor-Leste make up Group B.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the FIFA-sanctioned tournament will be played during the official international match window, ensuring participating nations can field their strongest available squads.
“As an official FIFA-sanctioned tournament staged during the international window, every participating nation is expected to call up its strongest available players, ensuring supporters will witness the highest possible standard of football throughout the competition.
“With clubs required to release players during the FIFA window, the tournament is expected to showcase full-strength national teams and provide a significant boost to the quality and prestige of the inaugural edition,” the report said.
Under the tournament format, only the winners of each Division One group will progress directly to the final, with no semi-final stage.
The runners-up from each group will contest a third-place playoff, while the remaining teams will play classification matches to determine their final standings.
Each team will play a minimum of two matches and a maximum of four during the tournament.
The Division One champions will receive prize money of US$1 million (RM4.09 million), while the Division Two winners will earn US$300,000 (RM1.23 million).
The FIFA Asean Cup was proposed by FIFA president Gianni Infantino after signing a Memorandum of Understanding on football development with ASEAN leaders during the 47th ASEAN Summit last year.
Infantino has expressed confidence that the tournament can become one of Southeast Asia’s premier football competitions, drawing inspiration from the success of the FIFA Arab Cup.
He said the competition aims to strengthen football development across the region by providing nations with more meaningful international fixtures and giving players greater opportunities to compete in a high-level FIFA-backed tournament. – July 29, 2026