Bangkok: The Football Association of Thailand has launched a strategy for women's football, 'From Seedlings to Chaba Kaew,' with the goal of returning to the World Cup finals once again. Karan Mirchandani, FIFA's Manager for Member State Development, co-chaired the launch of this strategic plan, which aims to elevate the Thai national women's football team back to the World Cup stage after missing out on a previous opportunity, through the 'Road to Brazil 2027' campaign.
According to Thai News Agency, the Football Association of Thailand has been selected by the AFC and UEFA to participate in the 'Women's Football Programme' as one of five Asian countries, alongside Taiwan, Vietnam, Uzbekistan, and Lebanon. This selection has resulted in the development of a strategic plan to systematically and tangibly advance women's football in Thailand.
The Thai women's national football team has recently moved up one spot in the world rankings to 46th. They are set to attend the Alpine Football Camp Training in Chiang Mai Province from June 13 to prepare for the 2026 AFC Women's Championship qualifiers, scheduled from June 23 to July 5 in the same province. The group champions from the qualifiers will progress to the final round, where 6+2 teams from Asia will be selected for the 2027 Women's World Cup in Brazil.
Futoshi Ikeda, the head coach of the Thai women's national team, believes that while the team needs to improve in several areas, their immediate focus should be on the qualifying rounds. He acknowledges that there is still time to develop and qualify for the 2027 World Cup.