Vietnam and Thailand were placed in Group C alongside Tajikistan and Chinese Taipei in the finals of the 2016 AFC Futsal Championship, to be held in Uzbekistan from February 10 to 21.

According to the draw made on December 2, defending champions Japan joined Australia, Malaysia and Qatar in Group D, while 2014 third-place finishers Uzbekistan were drawn in Group A with Lebanon, Kyrgyzstan and Saudi Arabia.

Group B was made up of reigning Asian runners-up Iran, Iraq, China and Jordan.

A total of 16 teams will play in a group-stage round robin tournament, with the top two teams from each group automatically advancing to the quarterfinals.

The four semifinalists of the AFC competition will be eligible for the 2016 FIFA Futsal World Cup in Colombia, while the four losers of the quarterfinals will compete for the remaining World Cup slot for the AFC.

Vietnam will play their Group C opener against Chinese Taipei on February 11 before taking on Tajikistan and Thailand on February 13 and 15 respectively.

Earlier in mid-October, Vietnam qualified for the Uzbekistan finals after making the semifinals of the 2015 AFF Futsal Championship, which acted as a qualification tournament for the 2016 AFC Futsal Championship.

At the previous AFC competition held in Vietnam two years ago, the host country cruised to the knockout stage as Group A runners-up with six points, but failed to progress following a 4-15 defeat to Iran.
Schedule:
Group A: Uzbekistan, Lebanon, Kyrgyzstan, Saudi Arabia
Group B: Iran, Iraq, China, Jordan
Group C: Thailand, Viet Nam, Tajikistan, Taiwan (China)
Group D: Japan, Australia, Malaysia, Qatar

ANH TU