AFC bans Vietnam forward Dinh Bac for 2 matches after U23 red card

Dinh Bac received a red card in Vietnam’s third-place match against South Korea at the tournament in Saudi Arabia in January.

Vietnam won the bronze medal after beating South Korea 7-6 in a penalty shootout following a 2-2 draw after extra time.

The AFC Disciplinary and Ethics Committee imposed a two-match suspension, including the automatic one-match ban for the red card and an additional one-match suspension, and fined the 21-year-old $1,000, the AFC said in a statement.

Dinh Bac, who scored four goals to finish as the tournament’s top scorer, will be ineligible for the 2028 edition of the U23 Asian Cup due to age restrictions.

Under AFC disciplinary regulations, the suspension will therefore be carried over to the senior national team.

He will miss Vietnam’s Asian Cup qualifier against Malaysia on March 31 at Thien Truong Stadium in northern Ninh Binh Province and the team’s opening match at the 2026 ASEAN Cup, which begins in July.

Separately, the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) was fined $1,500 after five Vietnam U22 players received yellow cards in the final of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games late last year, the AFC said.

Vietnam defeated hosts Thailand 3-2 after extra time in the final to win the gold medal.

In February, the VFF was also fined a total of $3,000 over violations involving Vietnam’s futsal team at the 2026 AFC Futsal Asian Cup in Indonesia.