Vietnamese football fans lead Southeast Asia in supporting national team abroad: website

In a post on Thursday, ASEAN Football ranked Vietnam first in its list of estimated rates of fans traveling abroad to support their national football teams.

Thailand ranked second at 80 percent, followed by Malaysia at 78 percent, Cambodia at 75 percent, and Brunei at 72 percent.

The Philippines came last at 45 percent.

ASEAN Football said the figures were estimates generated by artificial intelligence (AI) based on social media posts from football fan communities to provide an overall assessment.

The website did not disclose its calculation method but said it had excluded citizens living and working overseas from the statistics.

The estimates come amid declining fan interest in regional competitions such as the ASEAN Cup and the men's football tournament at the Southeast Asian Games.

At the 2026 ASEAN Cup, stadiums in Thailand were sparsely attended even when the host team reached the semifinals and final.

This is not the first time ASEAN Football has highlighted the enthusiasm of Vietnamese football fans.

During the 2026 ASEAN Cup, the website also ranked Vietnam as the team with the largest supporter base at the tournament.

According to its figures, Vietnam averaged 25,599 spectators per match, the highest among the 10 participating teams.

Indonesia ranked second with an average of 24,875 spectators per match, followed by Cambodia at 17,169.