Doan Trang
Thể Thao 247 - Vietnam NT team will encounter the 73rd team of the world while Thailand and India will face each other both in the semifinals. King’s Cup 2019 is scheduled to occur on this June by FAT.
According to many sources, India, Vietnam, and China are firstly invited by King’s Cup 2019's organizer. At first, India was likely to accept the invitation without vacillation. On the contrary, Vietnam and China showed hesitations then denied attending because of the first schedule happening in March.
After that, the plan was changed and have been postponed until June so VFF affirmed that it was a high chance that Vietnam would join the tournament. Meanwhile, China had other options.
Thai press confirmed that Vietnam, India, and China accepted the requesting. However, the Football Association of Thailand disclaimed about inviting China.
According to the latest news, the teams taking King’s Cup offerings are El Salvador, a preventative of CONCACAF (Central America). El Salvador now ranks at the 73rd of the world, India is at the 103rd, Vietnam's 99th and the lower one at 115th is Thailand.
Vietnam will encounter with El Salvador in the second semifinals after the one of Thailand and India. The two winners will face in the Final and the two losers will fight for the third-ranked.
In the past, FAT once invited numerous of Europe first teams joining King’s Cup such as Romania, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Poland. There was a presence of a Europe team in Slovakia.
After 13 years, this is the first time Vietnam attending King’s Cup. The latest one was in 2006 wherein the “Asian Golden Dragon” ranked at the 2-position after losing 1-3 to Thailand at the final match.
King’s Cup will happen on FIFA day this June. These matches are counted as "official friendly games" by FIFA, therefore, the results will affect the FIFA ranking table. For Vietnam, playing at King’s Cup will be a stepping stone for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualification.
Doan Trang
