FIFA President Gianni Infantino declared that the future of football in the Southeast Asian region is looking bright when addressing the 31st Ordinary Congress of the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) which was held in Vientiane, Laos.

Appearing on video at the AFF’s annual meeting, Mr Infantino praised the work of member associations (MAs) and specifically highlighted their use of FIFA programmes to support and grow football in the region.

“Thank you for giving me the opportunity to talk to you as you meet to discuss the state of football in your beautiful region, which has such a great passion for the sport,” said the FIFA President. “You must all be filled with optimism as the future of football in the ASEAN region is looking bright. There is so much to look forward to, especially with the very first FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup in the Philippines next year. Once again, you will be at the forefront of taking women’s sport into a new era.”

The ASEAN region is currently booming, having recently co-hosted the FIFA Women's World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™ and hosting the FIFA U-17 World Cup Indonesia 2023™. The Philippines is set to host the inaugural FIFA Women’s Futsal World Cup 2025™.

On the field, ASEAN nations are also delivering strong results, with Australia and Indonesia in contention to qualify directly for the FIFA World Cup 2026™. This follows a strong showing by ASEAN MAs in the FIFA Women’s World Cup with Australia making it to the semi-final and the Philippines claiming their first ever win, defeating co-hosts New Zealand.

Football in the region is also changing with the introduction of new regional competition. The second edition of the ASEAN Women’s Cup is currently underway in Laos and the rebranded ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup kicks-off in December.

“As I told the Prime Minister of Laos [Sonexay Siphandone] in New York back in September, this region has FIFA’s support to continue developing football,” added Mr Infantino. “Along with your vision and your determination, the FIFA Forward Development Programme is the tool to help you do that.

“Just ask the nearly two million boys and girls who have benefitted from the implementation of the FIFA Football for Schools programme during that time, learning how to work as a team on and off the pitch.”

FIFA and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in 2019, joining forces to leverage football as a catalyst for social development and healthy lifestyles in the region.

In the five years since signing the MoU, a wide range of initiatives have been carried out by FIFA and ASEAN and its Southeast Asian FIFA MAs, including the initiation and implementation of the FIFA Football for Schools Programme in several ASEAN member states.