Hanoi, 17 August 2026 – Japanese referee Ohashi Yusuke has been appointed to officiate the ASEAN Cup 2026 semifinal second leg between Vietnam and Malaysia, which will kick off at 20:00 on August 19 at My Dinh National Stadium.
Ohashi will be assisted by fellow Japanese officials Takeshi Asada and Michiyama Satoshi, while Indonesia’s Naufal Adya Fairuski will serve as the fourth official.
The Japanese referee brings considerable experience to the decisive encounter. He has officiated matches in major domestic competitions in Japan and has also spent time working in Germany.
Ohashi is already familiar with the ASEAN Cup 2026, having taken charge of three group-stage matches during this year’s tournament.
His first assignment saw Malaysia defeat Myanmar 2-1. He later officiated Thailand’s 1-0 victory over the Philippines before taking charge of Thailand’s 2-0 win against Myanmar.
Vietnam will enter Wednesday’s second leg holding a significant advantage after earning an impressive 2-0 victory over Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur in the opening encounter.
The two-goal cushion puts Kim Sang-sik’s side in a strong position to reach the final, although Vietnam will still need to remain disciplined against a Malaysian team expected to push aggressively for a comeback.
The first leg also featured a major refereeing scare for Vietnam. Uzbek referee Rustam Lutfullin initially showed goalkeeper Patrik Le Giang a straight red card following a challenge involving Sumareh in the 61st minute.
However, after a VAR review, Lutfullin overturned his original decision and allowed the Vietnam goalkeeper to remain on the pitch.
With a place in the ASEAN Cup 2026 final at stake, attention will now turn to Ohashi and his officiating team as Vietnam look to protect their two-goal advantage in front of their home supporters at My Dinh.
VSN/RPT
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