The first tournament of 2026 for Thailand's futsal warriors, who heartbreakingly missed the SEA Games gold medal on home soil, has now arrived.
It is the final round of the 2026 AFC Futsal Asian Cup.
The competition will take place from 27 January to 7 February 2026.
It will be held in Jakarta, Indonesia, an ASEAN rival that just snatched the SEA Games title from Thailand in a painful defeat late last year.
This marks the return of “Coach Bear” Rakphol Sainetngam, a homegrown and authentically Thai head coach, to lead Thailand’s men's futsal team once again.
He has come back to fully take the helm of the War Elephants futsal squad.
He brings a wealth of skill and experience gained over recent years coaching professionally abroad.
"Big Pom" Adisak Benjasiriwan, vice president of the Football Association of Thailand responsible for futsal and beach soccer development, revealed,
"During the four weeks of training camp, we must admit that Coach Bear has been intense and focused.
The training schedule is rigorous, with sessions both morning and evening.
This style is similar to Coach Pulpis, whom he worked with for many years."
Meanwhile, in two warm-up matches against Afghanistan, we achieved impressive victories.
For this Asian Championship, our intention is to perform at our best to restore the faith of Thai sports fans.
This follows our historic miss of the SEA Games gold medal on home soil—a moment no one will forget.
Our initial goal is to top the group and advance as far as possible.
At minimum, we aim to reach the semifinals, which is the standard for Thailand’s futsal team.
This will help maintain our FIFA ranking (currently 11th in the world) and keep us second in Asia.
This ranking affects our seeding for the next Asian Championship, which serves as a qualifier for the Futsal World Cup.
In the knockout stage with the final eight teams, Thailand may have a chance to face the host Indonesia, the 2025 SEA Games champions who recently defeated us.
I am confident in this Thai futsal squad, as it is probably the best we have had in the current era.
Led by “Jao Med” Muhammad Usman Musa, our top futsal scorer from Jimbee Cartagena, the Spanish futsal league champions,
who trained fully with the team for 10 days before flying to Indonesia.
Additionally, we have made three changes from the SEA Games squad.
One of them is Terdsak Charoenpong, a key forward from the Thakham Cold Storage Club, who returns to national duty by popular demand from futsal fans.
Therefore, with a well-rounded squad, no injuries, and thorough preparation,
our War Elephants futsal team should deliver strong performances in Asia as planned.
Though we face some challenges regarding the playing surface at Jakarta International Velodrome,
where the hosts have covered the wooden floor extensively with stickers.
Instead of repainting to standard as done in other venues where we have competed,
this may affect ball movement and make timing difficult,
especially for our Thai team that relies on fast passing.
I have reported these concerns to the AFC and the hosts by phone, but it is uncertain if they will resolve the issue before the tournament begins.
The match schedule for Thailand's men's futsal team in the 2026 AFC Futsal Asian Cup group stage is as follows:
On 27 January 2026,
Thailand vs. Lebanon at 13:00.
On 29 January 2026,
Kuwait vs. Thailand at 17:00.
On 31 January 2026,
Thailand vs. Vietnam at 15:00.
All matches will be broadcast live on YouTube: BG Sports.
Please remember to send lots of support to Thailand’s futsal warriors
as they strive to restore the nation’s confidence in this tournament!
- B Bangpakong -