October 26 – At the 47th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Malaysia, world football’s governing body FIFA launched a new tournament for Southeast Asian nations, football boss Gianni Infantino confirmed on Sunday.
Modelled after the FIFA Arab Cup, FIFA has added the ASEAN Cup to the calendar, aiming to stage the competition during the international match window.
The region is already home to the ASEAN Championship, a biennial tournament that has been dominated by Vietnam and Thailand in recent years and enjoys regional prestige. It now has Hyundai as its title sponsor and is organised by the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF).
AFF member nations are Brunei, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. They are also members of the AFC and
In a statement, Infantino said: “This will be a great addition to the regional football calendar, it will be impactful not only in the region, but it will allow the best players in the ASEAN region to shine on the global stage. Through the FIFA ASEAN Cup, we are uniting countries together, and this competition will be a huge success as it will help boost national team football in the ASEAN region and will support the development of our sport across all of Southeast Asia.”
On Sunday, East Timor was confirmed as the eleventh member of ASEAN.
FIFA also extended its memorandum of understanding with ASEAN, saying that the MOU will “promote sports integrity”, “leverage sports for social and economic development”, “ensure football development on and off the pitch”, “promote inclusion” and “support climate change resilience.”
Infantino, who is known to crisscross the world on a private Qatari jet, was attending the ASEAN summit (themed ‘inclusivity and sustainability) that gathered world leaders, including US President Donald Trump. ILO director general Gilbert Houngbo, the former primeminister of Togo, was also in attendance.
The FIFA president has often appeared alongside Trump at major political events, including the recent Gaza Peace Summit, prompting the New York Times to write that “Mr. Infantino has made it his business to be where Mr. Trump is, no matter the agenda of the day.” The newspaper also described the football official as “one of Mr. Trump’s biggest boosters.”
In Malaysia, Infantino also met with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio ‘Lula’ da Silva. In 2027, Brazil will be the first South American country to stage the Women’s World Cup.
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