Sidibari
The Maldives Women’s National Football Team is preparing for international duty at the AFC Asian Cup Qualifying stage.
Maldives is grouped with Vietnam, Guam and the United Arab Emirates in Group E of the qualifying. “The team has been doing training sessions every day for a month,” says the newly appointed coach, Ahmed Athif, via PSM News.
The Group E games of the qualifying will be hosted at the Việt Trì Stadium in Viet Tri, Vietnam.
The first game of the qualifying round will be against the host nation, Vietnam, on June 29th. The Vietnam women’s national football team is ranked 37th in the world, while Maldives is ranked 163rd.
The Maldives will then play against Guam, ranked 97th, on 2nd July. The final game for Maldives is set against 117th ranked UAE on 5th July.
Only the group-winner will qualify for the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup to be held in Australia. The AFC Asian Cup will feature 12 teams – China South Korea, Japan and hosts Australia have already booked a spot in the Cup.
The AFC Women’s Asia Cup will kick off on 1st March 2026, and will serve as the final continental qualifying tournament for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
