# 2023 AFF U-23 Championship

The 2023 AFF U-23 Championship was the 4th edition of the AFF U-23 Championship, organised by the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF). The tournament took place from 17 to 26 August in Rayong, Thailand. Vietnam are the defending champions, having won the 2022 edition and successfully defended their title through a 6–5 victory on penalties following a 0–0 draw after extra time over Indonesia in the final, thus becoming the first team to win the tournament for a second time.

## Qualified teams

There was no qualification phase. Singapore withdrew due to the country's under-23 team being subject to evaluation following the 2023 SEA Games. The following teams, all from member associations of the AFF, entered the tournament:
| Team | Association | Appearance | Previous best performance |
| Brunei | FA Brunei Darussalam | 2nd | Group stage (2022) |
| Cambodia | FF Cambodia | 4th | Fourth place (2019) |
| Indonesia | FA Indonesia | 2nd | Champions (2019) |
| Laos | Lao FF | 3rd | Third place (2022) |
| Malaysia | FA Malaysia | 4th | Fourth place (2005) |
| Myanmar | Myanmar FF | 3rd | Third place (2005) |
| Philippines | Philippine FF | 4th | Group stage (2005, 2019, 2022) |
| Thailand | FA Thailand | 3rd | Champions (2005) |
| Timor-Leste | FF Timor-Leste | 4th | Third place (2022) |
| Vietnam | Vietnam FF | 3rd | Champions (2022) |
* Did not enter
* Australia
* Singapore

## Draw

The draw for the 2023 AFF U-23 Championship was held on 29 May 2023 in Bangkok, Thailand and was streamed online in the competition's official YouTube channel. The seeding was based on the performance from the previous tournaments.
| Pot 1 | Pot 2 | Pot 3 |
| Thailand (H) Vietnam Timor-Leste | Malaysia Cambodia Philippines | Indonesia Laos Myanmar Brunei |

## Squads

A final squad of 23 players (three of whom must be goalkeepers) must be registered one day before the first match of the tournament.

## Match officials

* Abdul Hakim Mohd Haidi
* Ngô Duy Lân
* Souei Vongkham
* Muhammad Usaid Jamal
* Choi Hyun-jai
* Songkran Bunmeekiart
* Torpong Somsing
* Hiroki Kasahara

## Venues

Rayong :
| PTT Stadium | Rayong Province Stadium |
| Capacity: 12,000 | Capacity: 7,500 |

## Group stage

All times are local, ICT (UTC+7).

### Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Thailand (H) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | +8 | 9 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Cambodia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 4 | |
| 3 | Myanmar | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | |
| 4 | Brunei | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 12 | −11 | 0 | |

### Group B

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Malaysia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 6 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Indonesia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | Knockout stage |
| 3 | Timor-Leste | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 0 | |

### Group C

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Vietnam | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 6 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | Philippines | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 1 | |
| 3 | Laos | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 1 | |

## Ranking of second-placed teams

Only one second-placed team will qualify for the semi-finals.
Result against fourth-placed team in Group A will be not considered for this ranking.
| Pos | Grp | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | B | Indonesia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | Knockout stage |
| 2 | C | Philippines | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 1 | |
| 3 | A | Cambodia | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 1 | |

## Knockout stage

In the knockout stage, the penalty shoot-out was used to decide the winner if necessary.

### Bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 24 August – Rayong | 24 August – Rayong |
| Malaysia | 1 |
| Malaysia | 1 | 26 August – Rayong | 26 August – Rayong |
| Vietnam | 4 | 26 August – Rayong | 26 August – Rayong |
| Vietnam | 4 | Vietnam (p) | 0 (6) |
| 24 August – Rayong | 24 August – Rayong | | Vietnam (p) | 0 (6) |
| 24 August – Rayong | 24 August – Rayong | Indonesia | 0 (5) |
| Thailand | 1 | Indonesia | 0 (5) |
| Indonesia | 3 | | |
| Indonesia | 3 | Third Place | Third Place |
| | | 26 August – Rayong | 26 August – Rayong |
| | | Malaysia | 0 (3) |
| | | Thailand (p) | 0 (4) |

### Final
## Statistics
### Winners

* 2023 AFF U-23 Championship winners
* Vietnam Second title

### Awards

| Most Valuable Player | Top Scorer Award | Best Goalkeeper Award |
| Arkhan Fikri | Alif Ikmalrizal Đinh Xuân Tiến | Quan Văn Chuẩn |

### Team of the Tournament

| Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
| Quan Văn Chuẩn | Frengky Missa Songchai Thongcham Lương Duy Cương Robi Darwis | Khuất Văn Khang Arkhan Fikri Đinh Xuân Tiến | Ramadhan Sananta Alif Ikmalrizal Chukid Wanpraphao |

### Goalscorers

There were 47 goals scored in 16 matches, for an average of 2.94 goals per match.
3 goals
* Alif Ikmalrizal
* Đinh Xuân Tiến
2 goals
* Sor Rotana
* Ramadhan Sananta
* Fergus Tierney
* Chukid Wanpraphao
1 goal
* Wafiq Danish
* Meas Chanrith
* Kong Lyhour
* Ean Pisey
* Jeam Kelly Sroyer
* Muhammad Ferarri
* Souphan Khambaion
* Khamsa Phimmasone
* Thipphachanh Khambaion
* Aliff Izwan
* Chit Aye
* Kyaw Zin Hein
* Moe Swe
* Naung Naung Soe
* Swan Htet
* Dennis Chung
* Selwyn Mamon
* Phodchara Chainarong
* Yotsakorn Burapha
* Chiraphong Raksongkham
* Pattara Soimalai
* Varintorn Watcharaprinngam
* Netithorn Kaewcharoen
* Xavier Olagar
* Bùi Vĩ Hào
* Nguyễn Hữu Tuấn
* Nguyễn Hồng Phúc
* Nguyễn Minh Quang
* Nguyễn Quốc Việt
1 own goal
* Jefri Syafiq (against Cambodia)
* Sam Ol Tina (against Thailand)
* Phetdavanh Somsanid (against Vietnam)
* Natcha Promsomboon (against Indonesia)

### Final ranking

This table will show the ranking of teams throughout the tournament.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Final result |
| 1 | Vietnam | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 2 | +7 | 10 | Champions |
| 2 | Indonesia | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 7 | Runners-up |
| 3 | Thailand (H) | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 10 | Third place |
| 4 | Malaysia | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 7 | Fourth place |
| 5 | Cambodia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 4 | Eliminated in the group stage |
| 6 | Myanmar | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | Eliminated in the group stage |
| 7 | Philippines | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 1 | Eliminated in the group stage |
| 8 | Laos | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 1 | Eliminated in the group stage |
| 9 | Timor-Leste | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 0 | Eliminated in the group stage |
| 10 | Brunei | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 12 | −11 | 0 | Eliminated in the group stage |

## Broadcasting rights

| Country | Broadcaster Network | Channel TV | Online |
| Brunei | RTB | RTB Aneka | RTBGo |
| Cambodia | Bayon TV | BTV News | BTV News TV (YouTube), BTV Cambodia, BTV Sports (Facebook) |
| Indonesia Philippines Timor Leste | SCM | SCTV, Nex Parabola | Vidio |
| Malaysia | RTM | Sukan RTM | |
| Thailand | Truevision | Truesport 2, Truesport 3 | Truesport Now, TrueID |
| Vietnam | SCTV, VTV | SCTV15, SCTV17, VTV5 Tây Nam Bộ, VTV Cần Thơ | SCTV Online, Mytv, TV360, FPT Play |