Saudi Arabia 19 January 2026 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has made a surprising refereeing appointment for the semi-final clash between U23 Vietnam and U23 China at the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026, once again assigning a referee who has already officiated a U23 Vietnam match earlier in the tournament.
According to the official announcement from AFC, Australian referee Alexander George King will take charge of the semi-final between Vietnam U23 and China U23 at the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026.
Notably, Alexander King is the same referee who previously officiated Vietnam U23’s group-stage victory over Saudi Arabia U23. Earlier in the quarter-finals, when Vietnam U23 defeated UAE U23, the match was overseen by Iranian referee Payam Heydari, who had also been in charge of Vietnam’s group-stage win against Kyrgyzstan U23.
This appointment has drawn attention as Vietnam U23 have become the only team at the tournament to encounter referees from their group-stage matches again in the knockout rounds, a rare occurrence at a continental competition of this level.
Assisting Alexander King on the touchlines will be fellow Australians James Andrew Lindsay and Kearney John Robinson, serving as first and second assistant referees respectively. The fourth official for the match will be Qasim Matar Ali Al Hatmi.
In the VAR room, AFC has entrusted the role to experienced FIFA referee Muhammad Taqi of Singapore. He will be assisted by Thai VAR official Sivakorn Pu Udom.
The highly anticipated semi-final between Vietnam U23 and China U23 is scheduled to kick off at 22:30 on January 20, with a place in the final of the AFC U23 Asian Cup 2026 at stake.
Anh Minh
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