Vietnam reclaim Asia top 15 spot after defeating Afghanistan

Before the friendly with Afghanistan, Vietnam had 1,215.38 points and peaked 96th in FIFA rankings, and Kyrgyzstan at 95th with 3.1 points more. The 2-0 win against Afghanistan earned Vietnam 3.5 points, which was enough for the Golden Dragons to take Kyrgyzstan’s 95th spot in world ranking and 15th in Asia.

In October 2019, Vietnam also made it into the Asia top 15, thanks to two wins against Indonesia and Malaysia in the second round of 2022 World Cup qualifiers. Vietnam were able to maintain this position until two years later when they lost consecutive games in the third round of World Cup qualifiers. After eight months, the team finally returned to top 15.

But Vietnam’s current position is not guaranteed, as the qualifiers for 2023 Asian Cup take place in June. Vietnam already qualified for this tournament. However, Kyrgyzstan will have to play the qualifiers, giving them a chance to accumulate more points and take back their 15th position from the Golden Dragons.

Vietnam won’t be playing any game in the next quarter. They only have one major tournament this year: AFF Cup in December.