The Asean Football Federation held its inaugural tournament, the Tiger Cup, in 1996, with Singapore as the host. Thailand emerged as the champion.
Since its inception, the competition, now known as the Asean Cup, has developed into one of Southeast Asia’s most prominent football tournaments.
The competition consists of a group stage, followed by home-and-away semifinals and finals.
For the second consecutive tournament, all 10 qualifiers – Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Timor Leste (Group A), Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines and Vietnam (Group B) – will play two matches at home and two away during the group stages.
The first four tournaments – 1996-2002 – saw a single nation host the group stage, while from 2004-2016, two countries shared the job, with each nation hosting one group.
In 2018, the format changed again to spread the tournament to all corners of the region, with each country hosting two group matches and playing two away from home.
However, the Covid-19 pandemic meant the 2020 tournament was postponed to 2021 with a single host – Singapore – before resuming with the new format in 2022.
Which country is ranked the highest by Fifa?
Thailand is the highest-ranked in the Fifa world ranking at No. 96 – the only Southeast Asian team in the top 100.
Next on the list is Vietnam (119), followed by Indonesia (130), Malaysia (133), The Philippines (145), Singapore (162), Myanmar (165), Cambodia (181), Laos (187), and Timor Leste (196).
Which country has the most titles?
The most successful team is Thailand, with seven titles (1996, 2000, 2002, 2014, 2016, 2020, 2022) from 14 tournaments. Singapore has four wins (1998, 2004, 2007, 2012), Vietnam two (2008, 2018), and Malaysia one (2010).
Are clubs obligated to release their players?
As the tournament falls outside Fifa’s designated calendar for international football, clubs can refuse to release their players.
Shin Tae-yong, coach of pre-tournament favourite Indonesia, said he would use several youngsters for the tournament as 16 national players are playing overseas – five in the Netherlands, four in England, three in Belgium, and one each in the US, Italy, Australia, and Malaysia.
“We will combine the national team and the Under-22 squad,” Shin told the media earlier this month.
“This will undoubtedly reduce Indonesia’s competitive strength, but we are confident.”
Do teams earn Fifa ranking points?
Yes, teams earn ranking points, but as the Asean Cup is a regional tournament, the number of points available is lower than those for World Cup qualifiers, the AFC Asian Cup, or other higher-level tournaments.
