FIFA ASEAN Cup 2026: A Major Opportunity for John Herdman to Secure His First Trophy Together with the Indonesian National Football Team

The 2026 FIFA ASEAN Cup presents an opportunity for Indonesia National Team head coach John Herdman to claim his first trophy with the Garuda squad in front of home supporters. Three group stage matches at SUGBK will act as the first test for Herdman's side as they aim to progress further in the tournament.

The 2026 FIFA ASEAN Cup features eight teams in Division 1, divided into two groups. Group A comprises Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Bangladesh, while Group B consists of Vietnam, Pakistan, Thailand and the Philippines.

Indonesia will begin their 2026 FIFA ASEAN Cup campaign against Singapore. As the host nation for Division 1, the Garuda squad will play all Group A fixtures at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium (SUGBK), Jakarta before the competition advances to the next stages.

This tournament is scheduled to take place from 25 September to 5 October across Jakarta and Bandung. All Group A matches will be held at SUGBK, while Group B fixtures are hosted at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium, Bandung Regency.

As quoted from FIFA's official website on Wednesday, Indonesia's opening match will be held on Friday, 25 September. John Herdman's squad is scheduled to face Singapore at 20.00 WIB.

This opening fixture marks Indonesia's first appearance in this new FIFA tournament in front of their own supporters. Following the match against Singapore, the next challenge will come from Malaysia.

Indonesia will face Malaysia on Monday, 28 September. The match is scheduled to kick off at 19.30 WIB at SUGBK.

Three days later, Bangladesh will be Indonesia's final opponent in the group stage. The Indonesia vs Bangladesh fixture will be held on Thursday, 1 October, also kicking off at 19.30 WIB.

As such, all three of Indonesia's Group A matches will be played at SUGBK. This schedule allows Herdman's squad to utilise the full support of Jakarta's home crowd throughout the entire group phase.

For the final round of group stage matches, tournament organisers will implement simultaneous kickoff times for all fixtures within the same group.

For this reason, the Malaysia vs Singapore fixture will be moved to Si Jalak Harupat Stadium and played at the exact same time as Indonesia's match against Bangladesh at SUGBK.

The same arrangement applies for Group B. Thailand will face the Philippines at 16.00 WIB at Si Jalak Harupat Stadium, while Vietnam meet Pakistan at the same time at SUGBK. The winner of each group will face each other in the tournament final.

Full 2026 FIFA ASEAN Cup Schedule (Hosted in Indonesia):

Group A

Friday (25/9)
Bangladesh vs Malaysia, 16.00 WIB
Indonesia vs Singapore, 20.00 WIB

Monday (28/9)
Singapore vs Bangladesh, 16.00 WIB
Malaysia vs Indonesia, 19.30 WIB

Thursday (1/10)
Indonesia vs Bangladesh, 19.30 WIB
Malaysia vs Singapore, 19.30 WIB

Group B

Saturday (26/9)
Pakistan vs Thailand, 16.00 WIB
Vietnam vs Philippines, 19.30 WIB

Tuesday (29/9)
Philippines vs Pakistan, 16.00 WIB
Thailand vs Vietnam, 19.30 WIB

Friday (2/10)
Thailand vs Philippines, 16.00 WIB
Vietnam vs Pakistan, 16.00 WIB

Third Place Playoff & Final

Monday (5/10)
Third Place Playoff, 16.00 WIB
Final, 20.00 WIB