The football tournament at the 2001 SEA Games was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It included a men's tournament, and was also the fourth Southeast Asian Games to include a women's tournament, but the first permanently. The men's competition was held from 1 to 15 September 2001, while the women's tournament was held from 4 to 14 September 2001. The men's tournament was the first of the Southeast Asian Games to have an age limit, and has been played by U-23 national teams since then, while the women's tournament has no age limit. All matches were held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.