Bangladesh have been pitted in Group C alongside Vietnam, Yemen and Singapore as the draw of the AFC Under-23 Asian Cup 2026 Qualifiers was made in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.
The 44 teams were drawn into 11 groups for the qualifiers, which will be held at 11 centralised venues across Asian countries from September 1 to 9 this year, said an AFC media release.
Bangladesh will begin their campaign against Group C hosts Vietnam on September 3 before facing Yemen and Singapore on September 6 and 9, respectively.
Upon completion of the qualifiers, the 11 group champions and the four best-ranked runners-up will automatically qualify to join Saudi Arabia, which will be hosting the tournament finals for the first time in January 2026.
Group A is comprised of Jordan (hosts), Turkmenistan, Chinese Taipei and Bhutan, while holders and two-time champions Japan, Kuwait, Myanmar (hosts) and Afghanistan were placed in Group B.
Australia, China PR (hosts), Timor-Leste and Northern Mariana Islands were placed in Group D, while Group E saw 2018 winners Uzbekistan, Palestine, Kyrgyz Republic (hosts) and Sri Lanka.
Thailand (hosts), Malaysia, Lebanon and Mongolia are in Group F, while inaugural edition champions Iraq were pitted in Group G.
Cambodia (hosts), Oman and Pakistan stand in their way, while Qatar (hosts), Bahrain, India and Brunei Darussalam were pitted in Group H.
Group I is set for exciting battles with the UAE (hosts), Iran, Hong Kong and Guam, while Group J will see 2020 champions South Korea, Indonesia (hosts), Laos and Macau, and Group K features Tajikistan (hosts), Syria, the Philippines and Nepal.
