Four years ago, Southeast Asia hosted the Asian Cup. This time around, the 10 countries in the region are watching from the sidelines after none qualified for the continent's biggest football tournament.
Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam played well enough while co-hosting the 2007 tournament to spur hopes they might be ready to challenge for the title this year.
But only five nations in the region made it through to the final round of qualification for the 2011 Asian Cup: Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia. And those countries had a dismal campaign, winning just two of the 20 matches they contested against teams from outside Southeast Asia.
''We have to think of the bigger picture,'' said Peter Butler, a former midfielder with the English Premier League club West Ham United who has coached in the top divisions in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Myanmar, and is currently leading the BEC Tero Sasana team in Thailand.
''We need better coaching and better facilities,'' he added. ''Southeast Asia was left behind a long time ago when Japan and Korea showed everyone the way. It is hard to see the gap being closed as the top nations are reaping rewards for development schemes and infrastructure put in place years ago. Southeast Asia has a lot to do.''
Alfred Riedl, who led Vietnam to the quarterfinals of the 2007 Asian Cup and now coaches Indonesia's national team, said developing young talent is the key.
''Many federations don't place enough importance on youth development,'' the Austrian said. ''There is not enough patience to start a successful youth program because 10 years are needed for the rewards to be seen. Most of the decision-makers at the federations or governments are not in their position that long and only care about themselves.''
Some football experts had placed their hopes on leagues in Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia, which have boosted the salaries of players in recent years to try to improve the quality of play. But this has only increased the number of foreign players who are interested in coming to Southeast Asia, Riedl said.
''Most of the countries here have too many foreign players in their leagues and, as a national team coach, it is difficult to find local players for the key positions,'' he said.
This would not be such a problem if the top Southeast Asian players were heading overseas themselves to gain experience playing at a higher level on a regular basis.
An increasing number of players from Japan and South Korea are traveling to Europe to play for teams like Manchester United in England and Borussia Dortmund in Germany.
But Southeast Asian stars rarely move to Europe. Those who have tried are usually back home quickly.
Vietnam star striker Le Cong Vinh played twice for the Portuguese club Leixoes in 2009 before returning home several months later. In 1999, Thai striker Kiatisuk Senamuang spent a season with the English lower-league team Huddersfield Town, but never managed to make a first-team appearance.
Few Southeast Asian footballers even play in the leagues closer to home in South Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia.
This lack of international experience makes a difference in matches against the more experienced teams in East Asia and the Middle East, said former Cambodia coach Scott O'Donnel of Australia.
''Teams like Singapore and Thailand went close to qualifying for the Asian Cup but lacked the international experience playing against different styles of opposition,'' O'Donnel said. ''Southeast Asian teams tend to play mainly other teams from Southeast Asia.
''They need to experience playing against teams from East, West and Middle East on a regular basis to get used to the different styles as well as getting used to playing in front of hostile crowds and in different climatic conditions,'' he said.
Thai national team assistant Steve Darby said the Southeast Asian squads can turn things around with the right investment in facilities and players.
''The playing talent exists in the region but the countries that do well all seem to have excellent professional leagues with good training and playing facilities,'' he said. ''That is the goal for Southeast Asia. It is sad for the region as it is such a hotbed of soccer.''
