Over the last two years, it has become clear that sporting events, especially football and boxing, can attract massive livestreaming numbers. The recent AFC U-23 Asian Cup 2026 qualifiers, held between September 3 and 9, showed just that, going one step further and proving that even age-group tournaments can be attractions when the conditions are right.
The AFC U-23 Asian Cup 2026 qualifiers was a tournament that decided which sides would qualify for the biggest continental competition for nations in this age group. Held between September 3 and 9, the livestreams of matches involving the Vietnamese and Thai teams consistently reached over 500,000 peak concurrent viewers.
The 2024 ASEAN Championship's broadcasts from earlier this year showed that Vietnamese channels could reach previously unheard-of numbers when it came to football coverage. The same channels were active, covering the nation's U-23 team as it embarked on its own continental dream.
FPT Bóng Đá Việt, one of the Southeast Asian country's top television and digital content brands, hit 914,317 Peak Viewers (PV) on September 9. Interest was high for the Vietnam versus Yemen game as it was the final group match, and with both sides on six points, the winner would seal its spot in the main tournament.
Luckily, Vietnam edged Yemen 1:0 in front of thousands of excited home fans to qualify for the 2026 AFC U-23 Asian Cup as the group winner. With the senior team winning the record-breaking ASEAN Championship 2024, the U-23 side will look to emulate them and become first-time winners of this coveted continental crown.
The numbers that the FPT Bóng Đá Việt channel hit put it among the month's most popular channels. The impact was even more during the tournament itself, with this channel taking the third spot when the dates are filtered to between September 3 and 9.
Another noteworthy Vietnamese sports channel, BÓNG ĐÁ VIỆT NAM, also finished among the top ten most popular channels list for the duration of the tournament. It was joined by Thai channel BG SPORTS, which covered Thailand's journey during the same qualifiers, with the SEA nation also qualifying for the main event, which will be held in January 2026 in Saudi Arabia.
The qualifiers for an age-group sporting event attracting such high viewership numbers may not have been on many people's bingo cards this year. However, it does point to the growing influence of sports in the wider livestreaming lexicon, with online platforms fast replacing traditional media like TV and OTT when it comes to audience preference.
It is also heartening to see that one of the densest and most important markets for livestreaming, Southeast Asia, continues to grow in this regard. The proliferation of smartphones, led by more affordable data plans, has caused a boom in people with access to services like YouTube and TikTok. It has helped these platforms rise to the top of the broadcasting chain, as fans can catch the matches live from anywhere and at their convenience.
With interest from vital markets high, the broadcasts of the 2026 AFC U-23 Asian Cup have the potential to create a lot of hype. With countries like Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia in the mix, interest among audiences who are also regular users of livestreaming services could reach an all-time high.
Streams Charts will ensure to track the viewership from these matches and report on any interesting numbers and trends that pop up. In the meantime, readers can get access to exclusive data, including language and platform statistics, by subscribing to our PRO package here.
