Macau to feature in AFC Women’s U17 Cup qualifiers

Macau’s under-17 (U17) women’s team will feature in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Asian Cup U17 qualifiers.

The local team was placed in Group F in the draw for the qualifiers, held at the AFC House (headquarters) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, late last week.

Along with Macau, Group F comprises Thailand (host), Lebanon, and Bhutan. The four teams will vie for the sole ticket to the final stage of the competition, which will take place in China in March and April next year.

Macau is part of the expanded edition with 30 teams, two more than the previous edition. The teams are divided into eight groups, six of four teams and two of three, and will contest a single round-robin centralized league from October 5 to 11.

Each group winner will advance to the finals, joining the quartet of teams that have qualified directly as the top four finishers from the 2026 campaign, including defending champions North Korea, runners-up Japan, and semi-finalists Australia and China.

Group A hosts Tajikistan will face South Korea, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates, while Indonesia will challenge Singapore (host), Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain in Group B.

Standing as top seeds in Group C, Chinese Taipei will face Iran, Laos (host), and Cambodia, while Vietnam (host) will play the Kyrgyz Republic, Northern Mariana Islands, and Palestine in Group D.

India heads Group E, with Malaysia (host), Syria, and Iraq.

Group G will see Myanmar (host), Hong Kong, and Guam, while Group H will feature the Philippines, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan (host).

This is only the second time Macau has fielded a team in this competition after its debut last year.

MFA amends bylaws and name

The draw for the AFC Asian Cup Women’s U17 qualifiers took place precisely one day after the local football association amended its bylaws.

The Macau Football Association (MFA) will become the Football General Association Macao-China. The new MFA bylaws were said to require minor, specific amendments to comply with the latest requirements of international confederations, such as the AFC and FIFA.

Among the amendments, and in addition to adding “China” to the name, the MFA also included provisions in its new bylaws requiring all members to “maintain political and religious neutrality.”

Also amended were the previous provisions designating Portuguese as one of the association’s official languages for communication. The new bylaws designate Chinese as the sole official language, relegating Portuguese to a secondary status alongside English.