The South Vietnam national under-20 football team () was the under-20 team that represented the Republic of Vietnam designated specifically for the AFC Youth Championship (today AFC U-20 Asian Cup). It ceased to exist on the Fall of Saigon.
The South Vietnam team played their last games at 1974 AFC Youth Championship, and ceased to exist 1 year later after the Fall of Saigon in April. The North and South regions combined into the unified Vietnam in 1975, with the Vietnam national team replacing both the North and South teams. Like their senior teams, the unified republic was allowed to keep South Vietnam's membership of FIFA and the AFC, resulting in the South Vietnam team's historical record usually being counted as part of the overall record of the Vietnam national under-20 team.
History South Vietnam under-20 had appeared at 11 AFC Youth Championships throughout their existence. Their first appearance came at the 1961 tournament held in Thailand, where they were defeated by Indonesia 2–0 on their first match, but managed to won two matches against Singapore 5–0 and unexpectedly, Japan 4–2. South Vietnam later managed to hold a 1–1 draw against South Korea, advancing them to third place match. They lost Thailand 2–1, finishing fourth as their best result.
3 years later, South Vietnam hosted their tournament in Saigon, and was drawn in Group B, against Burma, Malaysia and India. They started their matches by losing 3–0 to Malaysia, then managed to hold a 0–0 draw against India and finally winning 1–0 against Burma. Finishing 3rd on the group table and was eliminated on the group stage as the result of goal difference.
The team played their last games on the 1974 AFC Youth Championship, where they won 1–0 against the Filipinos on 16 April 1974, their last winning match. They later played their final matches against Iran and Singapore, losing 2 matches with a score of 4–0 on 20 and 22 April 1974, finishing 3rd on the group table. The team ceased to exist 1 year later after the Fall of Saigon in April, when the Vietnam War ended.
Tournament record AFC Youth Championship AFC Youth Championship record Year Result 1959 Did not enter 1960 1961 Fourth place 5 2 1 2 11 7 1962 Group stage 4 1 2 1 6 5 1963 Group stage 5 2 2 1 10 7 1964 Group stage 3 1 1 1 6 6 1965 Group stage 4 1 0 3 9 8 1966 Did not enter 1967 Quarter-finals 4 1 2 1 3 5 1968 Group stage 3 1 0 2 2 7 1969 Quarter-finals 4 1 1 2 6 13 1970 Group stage 3 1 0 2 1 7 1971 Group stage 3 1 0 2 2 8 1972 Withdrew 1973 Did not enter 1974 Group stage 3 1 0 2 1 8 1975 Did not enter Total Fourth place 38 12 8 17 56 73
Match results Keynotes WinDraw Defeat
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1974
Honours Continental AFC Youth Championship Fourth place (1): 1961
See also South Vietnam national football team Vietnam national under-20 football team
References