The Lao women’s football team trains at the National Stadium in Vientiane this week.  --Photo Lao Football Federation

LFF announces women footballers for SEA Games

The Lao Football Federation (LFF) has announced the names of the 26 women who will make up the team competing in the women’s football tournament at the 31st South-East Asian (SEA) Games in Vietnam next month.
The team will travel to Vietnam at the begin of May, where their first match will be against Myanmar on May 5.
The Lao women’s team has been drawn in Group B alongside Thailand, Myanmar and Singapore. The team is scheduled to play Singapore on May 13 and Thailand on May 15.
Group A in the women’s competition comprises Vietnam, the Philippines, Cambodia and Indonesia.
The team is currently training at the National Stadium in Vientiane under the watchful eye of head coach Mr Vongmixay Soubuakham, who is a seasoned footballer.
The players have been training since March 14 and Mr Vongmixay said that although the situation was very challenging everyone was determined to do their best and come away from the SEA Games with a good result.
Despite the short training period, the team would up their game and improve their performance on the pitch, he added.
Some of the team members have been playing football from the age of 15-16 after a women’s training regime was introduced in 2016.
Since then, women footballers have competed at the Asean Championship and other events in Asia, with the most outstanding players now forming the national team.
The team comprises three goalkeepers from Vientiane and Savannakhet province, while most of the other players come from Vientiane and five are based in Savannakhet.
In October 2021, Laos took part in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup India 2022 Qualifiers, hosted by Bahrain.

By Sangkhomsay Bubphanouvong
(Latest Update April 20, 2022)