Vietnam are slated to undergo a training period in October in South Korea, where they will play a friendly game with the hosts’ national team as per a schedule announced by the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) on Thursday.

The most recent encounter between the two national teams took place in 2004. 

Throughout history, they have faced each other on six occasions, with Vietnam emerging victorious only once in the 2004 Asian Cup qualifiers.

Their upcoming meeting’s date is likely to be disclosed at a later time as the VFF’s Thursday announcement did not specify a particular date.

Vietnam’s friendly schedule was announced shortly after the draw of Asia’s second preliminary round for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Thursday put them in Group F with Iraq, the Philippines, and either Indonesia or Brunei, who will compete with each other in the first qualifying stage over two legs on October 12 and 17.

When the second round of Asia’s qualifiers kicks off in November, South Korea are pitted against China and Thailand, while Japan are in the same group as North Korea and Syria. 

South Korea’s group also includes either Singapore or Guam, while Japan will take on the winners of a play-off between Myanmar and Macau.

Australia, who made it to the knockout round at the 2022 FIFA World Cup before losing to eventual champions Argentina, are part of Group I alongside Palestine, Lebanon, and either the Maldives or Bangladesh.

As a result of FIFA’s decision to expand the World Cup finals to 48 nations, Asia has been granted eight guaranteed berths, with a possible ninth spot available through intercontinental play-offs.

The top two teams from the nine groups drawn in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Thursday will advance to the third preliminary round, where three groups of six teams will compete for the coveted World Cup spots.

In their respective groups, reigning Asian Cup champions Qatar will face India, Kuwait, and either Afghanistan or Mongolia, while Iran, with six World Cup qualifications under their belt, will encounter Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Hong Kong or Bhutan in Group E.

Group G features Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Tajikistan, and Cambodia or Pakistan.

In Group H, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and either Yemen or Sri Lanka, along with Nepal or Laos, will compete for advancement.

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