Malaysia suspects drone surveillance at ASEAN Cup

During the closed-door training session, a drone was spotted hovering over the training ground, prompting the team to pause their session until the device left.

Coach Pau Marti Vicente confirmed that the drone appeared to be coming from an area adjacent to the pitch. However, he dismissed speculation that the incident was linked to the host team, Cambodia. "I don't think it belongs to Cambodia," Vicente said at a press conference on Dec. 7. "That was disappointing, but the players handled it well."

The Spanish coach noted that Malaysia also use drones to record their training sessions for professional purposes, ensuring that no unauthorized devices are present in the area.

The incident adds to a list of suspected drone surveillance cases in sports. Earlier this year, Canada women's football team head coach Bev Priestman and two colleagues were banned from football for a year by FIFA after using a drone to spy on New Zealand’s training sessions for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

In the ASEAN Cup opening game at the Olympic Stadium on Sunday, Malaysia were held off to a 2-2 draw by Cambodia. Following that, they will play Timor Leste on Dec. 11, Thailand on Dec. 14 and Singapore on Dec. 20.

Malaysia’s best ASEAN Cup result came in 2010, when they won the title. They reached the final again in 2018, but were defeated by Vietnam. Thailand lead the tournament with seven titles, followed by Singapore with four and Vietnam with two.

Malaysia enter the tournament with a weaker squad than usual, as several key players from Johor Darul Tazim, the country’s strongest club, were not released for national duty.

Coach Vicente confirmed that he will step down after the 2024 ASEAN Cup. Before that, Malaysia parted ways with South Korean coach Kim Pan-gon after three years. The Football Association of Malaysia is working to restructure the national team to remain competitive with regional rivals Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia.

Malaysian media has named potential candidates to replace Vincente such as former Iran coach Carlos Queiroz, ex-South Korean coach Jurgen Klinsmann, former Johor Darul Tazim coach Benjamin Mora and Esteban Solari. New Straits Times also affirmed that Australian legend Tim Cahill could play a pivotal role in shaping Malaysia's future football direction.

The AFF Cup is renamed the ASEAN Cup from this year, running from Dec. 8, 2024, to Jan. 5, 2025. The 10 participating teams are divided into two groups, playing two home and two away matches.