2026 AFC U-20 Women's Asian Cup
International football competition
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The 2026 AFC U-20 Women's Asian Cup was the 12th edition of the AFC U-20 Women's Asian Cup (including previous editions of the AFC U-20 Women's Championship and AFC U-19 Women's Championship), the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) for the women's under-20 national teams of Asia.
| ฟุตบอลหญิงชิงแชมป์เอเชีย รุ่นอายุไม่เกิน 20 ปี 2026 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tournament details | |
| Host country | Thailand |
| Dates | 1–18 April 2026 |
| Teams | 12 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venues | 3 (in 2 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  Japan (7th title) |
| Runners-up |  North Korea |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 25 |
| Goals scored | 93 (3.72 per match) |
| Attendance | 3,490 (140 per match) |
| Top scorer | Pak Ok-i (7 goals) |
| Best player | Noa Fukushima |
| Best goalkeeper | Pak Ju-gyong |
| Fair play award | Japan |
← 2024 2028 → | |
The tournament was held in Thailand from 1 to 18 April 2026.[1][2] For the first time, the tournament was contested by twelve teams[3] and there will be no third place playoff.[4] The top four teams of the tournament would qualify for the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Poland as the AFC representatives. North Korea were the defending champions, having won their second title in 2024. They were beaten in the final by Japan for their record-extending seventh title.
Qualification
The host country qualified automatically. Eleven teams were decided by a single round of qualifying taking place between 2–10 August 2025.[3]
Qualified teams
The following teams qualified for the tournament.
| Team | Qualified as | Date of qualification | App. | Last | Previous best performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Thailand | Hosts | 14 April 2025 | 8th | Fourth place (2004) | |
| North Korea | Group A winners | 10 August 2025 | 12th | Champions (2007, 2024) | |
 Vietnam | Group B winners | 7th | Quarter-finalists (2004) | ||
 Australia | Group C winners | 10th | Third place (2006, 2024) | ||
 India | Group D winners | 4th | Quarter-finalists (2004) | ||
 China | Group E winners | 12th | Champions (2006) | ||
| Japan | Group F winners | 12th | Champions (2002, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2017, 2019) | ||
 Uzbekistan | Group G winners | 6th | Group stage (2002, 2004, 2015, 2017, 2024) | ||
 South Korea | Group H winners | 12th | Champions (2004, 2013) | ||
 Jordan | Best runners-up | 2nd | Group stage (2006) | ||
 Bangladesh | 2nd best runners-up | 1st | Debut | ||
 Chinese Taipei | 3rd best runners-up | 6th | Runners-up (2002) | ||
Draw
The draw was held on 10 November 2025 at the AFC House in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.[5] The twelve teams were drawn into three groups of four teams. The teams were seeded according to a points system derived from their final rankings across the previous three editions, with the hosts Thailand automatically seeded and assigned to Position A1 in the draw.
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 | Pot 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Venues
The competition was played in three venues across two provinces.
| Pathum Thani | Nonthaburi | |
|---|---|---|
| Thammasat Stadium | Pathum Thani Stadium | Nonthaburi Province Stadium |
| Capacity: 25,000 | Capacity: 15,114 | Capacity: 10,000 |
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 |
 |
Squads
Players born between 1 January 2006 and 31 December 2010 are eligible to compete in the tournament. Each team has to register a squad of minimum 18 players and maximum 23 players, at least three of whom must be goalkeepers (regulation articles 21.2 and 26.3).
Match officials
The following match officials were appointed for the tournament.
- Referees
Mu Mingxin
Yang Shu-ting
Ranjita Devi Tekcham
Azusa Sugino
Cha Min-ji
Esra'a Al-Mbaidin
Keomany Phengmeuangkhoun
Nurul Ain Izatty Zainal
Khin Nyein Chan
Pak Un Jong
Alissar Baddour
Rawdha Al-Mansoori
Gulshoda Saidqulova
Bùi Thị Thu Trang
- Assistant referees
Tshering Choden- Wen Lili
- Wu Qiaoli
- Saki Nakamoto
- Miu Sone
- Islam Al-Abadi
- Munirah Ha Ali
Battsetseg Unurjargal- May Thet Phyu
Merlo Albano- Yoon Eun-hee
Malika Hathlahawatta Muhandiramalage
Suwida Wongkraisorn
Dilshoda Rahmanova- Nguyen Thi Hang Nga
Group stage
The top two teams of each group and the two best third-placed teams qualified for the quarter-finals.
- Tiebreakers
Teams were ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss), and if tied on points, the following tiebreaking criteria are applied, in the order given, to determine the rankings (Regulations Article 9.3):[4]
- Points in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
- Goal difference in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
- Goals scored in head-to-head matches among tied teams;
- If more than two teams are tied, and after applying all head-to-head criteria above, a subset of teams are still tied, all head-to-head criteria above are reapplied exclusively to this subset of teams;
- Goal difference in all group matches;
- Goals scored in all group matches;
- Penalty shoot-out if only two teams are tied and they met in the last round of the group;
- Disciplinary points (yellow card = 1 point, red card as a result of two yellow cards = 3 points, direct red card = 3 points, yellow card followed by direct red card = 4 points);
- Drawing of lots.
All times are local, ICT (UTC+7).[4]
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | +6 | 9 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Thailand (H) |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 6 | |
| 3 | Vietnam |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 | −5 | 3 | |
| 4 | Bangladesh |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 0 |
| Bangladesh | 0–2 | China |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
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| Vietnam | 1–0 | Bangladesh |
|---|---|---|
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Report |
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | North Korea |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | +19 | 9 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | South Korea |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 6 | |
| 3 | Uzbekistan |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 3 | |
| 4 | Jordan |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 14 | −13 | 0 |
| South Korea | 2–0 | Uzbekistan |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| North Korea | 8–0 | Jordan |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| Jordan | 1–2 | South Korea |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
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| Uzbekistan | 0–6 | North Korea |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
| Uzbekistan | 4–0 | Jordan |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| North Korea | 5–0 | South Korea |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Group C
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japan |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 2 | +11 | 9 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Australia |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 5 | +7 | 6 | |
| 3 | India |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 12 | −9 | 3 | |
| 4 | Chinese Taipei |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 10 | −9 | 0 |
| Chinese Taipei | 0–2 | Japan |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
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| Chinese Taipei | 1–3 | India |
|---|---|---|
Kao Hsin  90+3' |
Report |
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Ranking of third-placed teams
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B | Uzbekistan |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 8 | −4 | 3 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | A | Vietnam |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 7 | −5 | 3 | |
| 3 | C | India |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 12 | −9 | 3 |
Knockout stage
In the knockout stage, extra time and a penalty shoot-out were used to decide the winner if necessary.[4]
Bracket
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 11 April – Pathum Thani (TS) | ||||||||||
| China | 2 | |||||||||
| 15 April – Pathum Thani (TS) | ||||||||||
| Uzbekistan | 1 | |||||||||
| China | 0 | |||||||||
| 11 April – Pathum Thani (PTS) | ||||||||||
| Japan | 2 | |||||||||
| Japan | 4 | |||||||||
| 18 April – Pathum Thani (TS) | ||||||||||
| Vietnam | 0 | |||||||||
| Japan | 1 | |||||||||
| 12 April – Pathum Thani (PTS) | ||||||||||
| North Korea | 0 | |||||||||
| North Korea | 3 | |||||||||
| 15 April – Pathum Thani (PTS) | ||||||||||
| Australia | 0 | |||||||||
| North Korea | 3 | |||||||||
| 12 April – Pathum Thani (TS) | ||||||||||
| South Korea | 0 | |||||||||
| Thailand | 1 | |||||||||
| South Korea (a.e.t.) | 2 | |||||||||
Quarter-finals
The winners qualified for the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.
| China | 2–1 | Uzbekistan |
|---|---|---|
|
Report | Egamberdieva 69' |
| North Korea | 3–0 | Australia |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
| Thailand | 1–2 (a.e.t.) | South Korea |
|---|---|---|
| Casteen 72' |
Report |
|
Semi-finals
| North Korea | 3–0 | South Korea |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Final
| Japan | 1–0 | North Korea |
|---|---|---|
| Sano 56' |
Report |
Goalscorers
There were 93 goals scored in 25 matches, for an average of 3.72 goals per match.
7 goals
- Pak Ok-i
5 goals
Skye Halmarick- Noa Fukushima
- Kang Ryu-mi
3 goals
- Mao Itamura
- Miki Kimura
- Natsumi Tago
- Pak Il-sim
- Kurisara Limpawanich
- Rinyaphat Moondong
2 goals
- Daisy Brown
- Peta Trimis
Mst Sagorika- Zeng Yujia
- Zheng Lu
- Sibani Nongmeikapam
- Yura Honda
- Choe Yon-a
- Jin Hye-rin
- Oydinoy Turgunova
- Nguyễn Thị Thùy Linh
1 goal
- Danella Butrus
- Tiana Fuller
- Avaani Prakash
- Wang Aifang
- Xiao Yafei
- Yu Jiaqi
- Yu Xingyue
- Kao Hsin
- Bhumika Khumukcham
- Yasmeen Al Zurikat
- Miyu Matsunaga
- Momoka Sano
- Haruko Suzuki
- Ho Kyong
- Jon Il-chong
- Jong Pok-yong
- Ri Kuk-hyang
- Ri Su-jong
- Ro Un-hyang
- So Ryu-gyong
- Cho Hye-young
- Lee Ha-eun I
- Nam Seung-eun
- Park Ju-ha
- Madison Casteen
- Pichayatida Manowang
- Shahnoza Dekanbaeva
- Mehribon Egamberdieva
- Etibor Shodieva
1 own goal
- Rubi Sullivan (against North Korea)
- Thoibisana Chanu Toijam (against Japan)
Qualified teams for the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup
The following four teams from AFC qualified for the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Poland.
| Team | Qualified on | Previous appearances in FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup |
|---|---|---|
| Japan | 11 April 2026 | 8 (2002, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2016, 2018, 2022, 2024) |
| China | 6 (2004, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2018) | |
| North Korea | 12 April 2026 | 8 (2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2024) |
| South Korea | 7 (2004, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2022, 2024) |
- 1 Bold indicates champions for that year. Italic indicates hosts for that year.