Vietnamese football faces the risk of 'disappearing' from TV screens: The story of broadcasting rights for the FIFA ASEAN Cup and Asiad
**Core answer**: Vietnam chưa có bản quyền FIFA ASEAN Cup và Asiad do FIFA tập trung hóa quyền phát sóng, nâng giá bản quyền, khiến toàn bộ Đông Nam Á chưa có chủ sở hữu. Asiad bế tắc vì gói đa môn thể thao quá đắt. **Key facts**: - FIFA tổ chức ASEAN Cup 2026, làm phức tạp đàm phán bản quyền so với thời AFF. - Một đài truyền hình lớn Việt Nam “gần như” chốt thành công bản quyền ASEAN Cup, nhưng chưa ký. - Toàn bộ khu vực Đông Nam Á không có chủ sở hữu bản quyền FIFA ASEAN Cup. - Bản quyền Asiad 20 “rất khó khăn”, nguy cơ người hâm mộ không xem trực tiếp. - Việt Nam gặp Philippines (26/9), Thái Lan (29/9), Pakistan (2/10) tại vòng bảng. **Source attribution**: VietNamNet | Published: không rõ ngày (trích dẫn từ phân tích gốc)
A match without cheering still tells more than a noisy season. But if that match has no television broadcast, do fans still have a chance to hear the sound of boots on the grass? That is the question haunting those involved in Vietnamese football right now, as both the 2026 FIFA ASEAN Cup and the 20th Asian Games (Asiad 20) have no broadcasting rights owner in the country.
Context: Champions without a signal
Two months ago, Vietnamese football lifted the Southeast Asian championship trophy – a title that put the national team at the top of the region. Fans barely had time to savor the joy before the 2026 FIFA ASEAN Cup schedule was set: facing the Philippines on September 26 at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium in Bandung, meeting Thailand three days later, then concluding the group stage against Pakistan on October 2 in Jakarta. Three matches in roughly one week – a grueling test of fitness and squad depth for coach Kim Sang Sik.
But hidden behind that packed schedule is a far thornier issue: broadcasting rights. A source from VietNamNet said that a major Vietnamese television station is 'close to successfully closing' the rights for the FIFA ASEAN Cup. However, the term 'close to' in sports rights negotiations usually means 'not yet certain'. The dressing room is where truth lives longer than any contract – and here, the truth is that not a single signature has been placed, not only in Vietnam but across the entire Southeast Asian region.
The trouble is even greater with Asiad 20 – the Asian Games running from September 19 to October 4, overlapping exactly with the FIFA ASEAN Cup window. Asiad rights are proving 'very difficult', according to a television station leader. The Vietnamese sports delegation aims to win 4-6 gold medals and finish in the top 20 overall, but fans risk being unable to watch any events live.
Core analysis: Who is behind the deadlock?
This story is not about the incapability of Vietnamese television stations. It is the consequence of a structural change at the top: FIFA – the world's largest football organization – has brought the ASEAN Cup into its own rights management portfolio. Previously, the regional tournament was organized by the AFF (ASEAN Football Federation), making rights negotiations more flexible and prices softer. Now with FIFA involved, every negotiation becomes 'more complex than for previous regional tournaments'.
The result is that the rights price has risen, the package structure has become rigid, and Southeast Asian broadcasters – accustomed to lower prices – are engaged in a silent 'commercial strike'. The entire region has no rights owner. Vietnam is not an exception; it is a victim of a new game.
The irony is that fans are expected to shoulder the negotiation pressure: with high expectations following the championship, the demand for live viewing is enormous. Vietnamese broadcasters are striving to buy at a 'reasonable price' and plan to sub-license to domestic units to share the burden. But until FIFA lowers its price, all calculations remain on paper.
Contrarian angle: The problem is not unique to Vietnam
Mainstream media tends to ask, 'Why hasn't Vietnam bought the rights?' – as if this is a failure of domestic negotiators. But looking at the big picture: not a single Southeast Asian country has bought them – that is evidence of a product priced beyond the market's capacity.
The Asiad story makes this distortion even clearer. With 43 sports and 469 events, an Asiad rights package is usually sold as 'all or nothing'. A Vietnamese station can hardly pay for the entire Games just to broadcast a few key sports. Writing from a hospital bed, I understand that the pulse of a match never waits for anyone – but in the midst of a 'rights pain', broadcasters are forced to wait.
There is an interesting blind spot: the appearance of Pakistan in the ASEAN Cup schedule – a South Asian team in a Southeast Asian tournament – suggests FIFA is expanding the format. This further complicates rights valuation, as opponents are no longer familiar faces.
Takeaway: Waiting for a signal
In the world of broadcasting rights, everything can change in the final 24 hours. A 'close to closing' deal can collapse, or a sub-licensing agreement can suddenly appear. But if both the FIFA ASEAN Cup and the Asiad go dark, Vietnamese fans will face a paradox: the national team is at the peak of the region, yet they cannot see them play.
Will negotiators find common ground with FIFA before September 26? Or will fans only get to watch highlight clips on social media? The answer lies in how quickly a giant organization like FIFA accepts adjusting prices for an emerging market.