Eliminated by Cambodia, Vietnam U19 sets a sad record lasting 19 years

Vietnam U19 continues to fail in winning the Southeast Asian title after being knocked out of the 2026 U19 ASEAN championship, thus prolonging a 19-year period without a title, the longest ever among Vietnam's youth teams.

On the evening of June 9, Cambodia U19 caused a major upset when holding Australia U19 to a 2-2 draw in the final match of Group C. This result allowed the Cambodian team to advance to the semifinals as the best second-placed team, while Vietnam U19 was officially eliminated by just one point.

This was a regretful ending for coach Yutaka Ikeuchi and his players. Earlier, Vietnam U19 had hopes of progressing after finishing second in Group A. However, a 1-2 loss to host Indonesia cost the red-shirted team control of their own fate, forcing them to wait for favorable results from other groups.

Not only was there the sorrow of elimination, but Vietnam U19 also had to witness a forgettable statistic. Since their sole championship in 2007, when the tournament was still called the U20 Southeast Asian Championship, the Vietnam U19 team has gone 19 consecutive years without winning the regional title.

During that period, Vietnamese football has produced a series of talented generations such as Nguyen Cong Phuong, Nguyen Quang Hai, and Luong Xuan Truong. Vietnam U19 has come close to the title many times but always fell short at decisive moments.

The team's most notable achievements in this period are four runner-up finishes in 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2015. Additionally, Vietnam U19 regularly reached the semifinals or competed for medals, but the championship trophy remains a distant goal.

Compared to other youth levels of Vietnamese football, this is the longest trophy drought. Meanwhile, Vietnam U16, U17, and U23 have all won titles or achieved outstanding results in regional tournaments in recent years.

Being eliminated right from the group stage of the 2026 U19 Southeast Asian Championship further shows that the U19 generation still has a lot of work to do if they want to end a title drought that has lasted nearly two decades. Based on what has happened, the journey to regain the top position in Southeast Asia at the U19 level remains an unsolved puzzle for Vietnamese football.