FIFA congratulates Vietnam on first time participating in U20 World Cup

Immediately after U19 Vietnam made a splash at the U19 Asian Cup, the World Football Federation sent their congratulations on Twitter.

FIFA congratulates the historic milestone with Vietnamese football.

“Congratulations to Vietnam. This is the first time this team has qualified for the U20 World Cup,” the congratulatory message was posted with a picture of the Vietnamese flag.

In the quarter-finals of the U19 Asian Cup on the evening of October 23, Vietnam defeated host Bahrain 1-0. The only goal scorer of the match was Tran Thanh, a striker who was included in the starting lineup for the first time by coach Hoang Anh Tuan in this year's tournament.

Vietnam’s entry into the semi-finals of the AFC U19 Championship, thereby securing a ticket to the 2017 U20 World Cup, can be considered a big surprise. Before the tournament in Bahrain began, the team was not highly regarded because in the previous six appearances, they were eliminated in the group stage, without even winning a single match.

Before defeating Bahrain in the quarterfinals, coach Hoang Anh Tuan and his team also defeated North Korea 2-1, drew with UAE 1-1 and held Iraq to a 0-0 draw to take second place in Group B. All three of Vietnam's opponents in the group stage above have won the Asian Youth Championship at least once.

In the semi-finals, taking place on October 27, Vietnam will meet the winner of the match between Japan and Tajikistan.

According to VNE