Vietnam soar, Thailand slip in world futsal rankings

Thailand, who had just won the 2022 AFF Futsal Championship, dropped three places to 21st in the world with 1,280 points. Although Thailand won the title, they drew against Indonesia, who are 42nd in the world not only once but twice during the tournament.

For Vietnam, the team moved up once place to 38th despite their points reducing by nine, down to 1,096. This still put them in 2nd place across Southeast Asia, behind Thailand.

In the 2022 AFF Futsal Championship that concluded earlier this month, Vietnam suffered bad form and only finished third, although that was enough for them to qualify for the Futsal Asian Cup later this year.

Vietnam drew 1-1 against Myanmar in the first group stage game, then won 7-1 against Timor Leste and 5-1 against Australia, but only placed second in group B, behind Myanmar. In the semifinals, they faced Thailand and lost 1-3. Later, Vietnam had a tough fight with Myanmar in the third-place playoff and managed to beat them in the penalty shootout.

Southeast Asian futsal teams will meet again in SEA Games 31 hosted by Vietnam in May. Contenders for the gold medal are Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and Myanmar.