Football fosters friendship between Vietnam and Korea

"I would like to warmly congratulate the Vietnamese team under the leadership of coach Park Hang-seo on winning the championship at the 2018 Southeast Asian Football Championship (AFF Suzuki Cup)," Mr. Moon Jae In shared on his personal Facebook page on December 16.

Along with the red flags with yellow stars, the second leg of the AFF Suzuki Cup 2018 final between Vietnam and Malaysia at My Dinh Stadium featured many Korean flags brought by fans. This made the Korean President unable to hide his emotion at the bond between the two countries.

“Witnessing the image of Vietnamese fans raising the Vietnamese and Korean flags at yesterday’s final match, I felt that the two countries have become closer friends through football,” said Mr. Moon.

The President of the Republic of Korea expressed his joy at the AFF Suzuki Cup 2018 championship of the Vietnamese team, which had a significant impact on coach Park Hang-seo. President Moon hopes to continue to witness such beautiful images in the next tournaments that the Vietnamese team participates in.

“I hope that Vietnam and Korea will continue to foster their special friendship and together open up a bright, prosperous future,” President Moon shared.

President Moon Jae In encouraged coach Park Hang-seo during his visit to Vietnam earlier this year. Photo: Duc Cuong

Coach Park Hang-seo is currently one of the most sought-after “keywords” in Korea. During the recent tournament, Coach Park and his students were highly sought after by the domestic media. This made the 59-year-old strategist feel very grateful.

“In addition to being loved by Vietnamese fans, the Vietnamese team and I also receive a lot of support from Korean fans. However, I only have a small contribution as the coach of the Vietnamese team. However, I also hope that I will be a bridge to promote the good relationship between the two countries,” said Coach Park.

According to the plan, next March, the Vietnam national team will have a cup match between the two representatives of Southeast Asia and East Asia called AFF-EAFF Champions Trophy at My Dinh Stadium. Surely this confrontation is expected by Vietnamese and Korean fans when once again the "hottest" coach in the land of kimchi at the moment has the opportunity to face his hometown team.