High hopes for Vietnamese sports at international tournaments in 2023

2023 will be a busy year ahead for Vietnamese national football teams tasked with defending their title at the upcoming 32nd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, winning a gold at the 20th Asian Games, and recording good results at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.

The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup will mark the first time that Vietnam has progressed to the finals of the prestigious female international tournament.

In Group E, Vietnam will take on defending champions the United States on July 22, the winners of an intercontinental play-off on July 26, and runners-up Netherlands on August 1.

Before heading to the tournament, the Vietnamese women’s football team will participate in training camps in Japan and Europe, during which they play friendlies against the Japanese and German national teams in preparation for the Women’s World Cup 2023.

Elsewhere, the senior men’s national football team will take part in the 2023 Asian Cup in Qatar, although fixtures have yet to be scheduled for the competition.

The tournament was originally planned to take place in China this summer, although the hosts subsequently withdrawing from holding the tournament due to the development of the COVID-19 pandemic there.

A total of 24 teams will compete at the 2023 Asian Cup, with teams divided into six groups. The two best teams of each group and four third-placed teams will therefore progress through to the next round.

Head coach Park Hang-seo will bid farewell to the Vietnamese national men’s football team after the 2022 AFF Cup, meaning that the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) is seeking a new manager to lead the senior team. The team aim to qualify for the quarter-final stage as they did at the 2019 Asian Cup.

Furthermore, Vietnamese athletes are going to compete in the 20th Asian Games (ASIAD 20) which will run from September 23 to October 8 in Hangzhou, China, which involves 40 sports and a total of 482 sets of medals on offer.

The Vietnamese sporting delegation will vie for medals at SEA Games 32 taking place in Cambodia between May 5 and May 17. The regional games consists of 49 sports, including 608 events, although many sports which Vietnamese athletes are strong at are not listed in the games.

It will be a big challenge for the Vietnamese delegation as they seek to maintain their top position in the medal tally. At SEA Games 31 held in May 2022, Vietnam topped the medal tally with 205 gold, 125 silver and 116 bronze medals.

(Source:VOV)