The story of football and the club owner.

This is an inevitable trend in maintaining and developing the king of sports, which is not only significant for the V. League but will also expand its influence to the region and the world in the future if there is a sound strategy and effective investment.

Starting with Chairman Thang, a new face of Long An football emerged, with the arrival of coach Calistor and a host of stars from Dong Tam Long An and the Vietnamese national team such as Tai Em and Minh Phuong. Then came Chairman Duc with HAGL, who not only recruited talented domestic players (at that time, most were from the struggling and subsidized SLNA) but also a host of stars from neighboring Thailand, from Kiatisuk to Dusit and Thonglao… But perhaps Chairman Duc's most significant achievement was his partnership with Arsenal to create the Hoang Anh Gia Lai Arsenal JMG Academy, producing the outstanding U19 generation including Cong Phuong, Tuan Anh, and Van Toan… and the development of this group of stars was one of the foundations for Vietnamese football to break free from its regional "pond".

HAGL soars to great heights, and the credit goes primarily to Chairman Duc. (Photo: Archival image)

Notably, while Chairman Thang has "retired" from the club many years ago, Chairman Duc no longer has a training partnership with Arsenal through the aforementioned academy model and has yet to fully commit to bringing HAGL back to its glorious past. The 2021 season was a time when HAGL performed well with a strong and ambitious squad. Unfortunately, the Covid-19 pandemic left all of Chairman Duc's plans to bring Kiatisuk back unfinished.

And we cannot fail to mention the discreet but decisive club owner, Mr. Hien, who founded T&T Hanoi and now Hanoi FC. With his strong, multi-layered resources, he quickly propelled Hanoi football to the top of the V.League for many years and, along with HAGL, made a major contribution to the success of Vietnamese football.Head coach Park Hang-seoFor the past four years.

The Vietnamese national team during a training session. Photo: VFF

Clearly, the contributions of the aforementioned club owners to Vietnamese football are commendable and worthy of recognition. The problem is that with the Vietnamese national team aiming for the World Cup, the contributions of these club owners, as well as the overall football system, are insufficient, given that the quality of Vietnamese players remains at a regional level. Everyone knows that the decisions of Mr. Duc (referring to a prominent figure) and Mr. Hien (referring to a prominent figure) to send Cong Phuong or Van Hau abroad to play had multiple objectives, benefiting both the businesses, the individual players, and the football system as a whole. Previously, talents like Huynh Duc and Cong Vinh also played abroad, but their success was limited, yielding few tangible results. Compared to neighboring Thailand in this regard, it's clear that Vietnamese football club owners still have much work to do, needing to think more carefully and make bolder decisions.

Chairman Hien. Photo courtesy of the archives.

To elevate Vietnamese football, we need big club owners – truly strong investors, not only domestically in the V.League but also investing abroad, something many Thai club owners have successfully done, even in the English Premier League. This investment would allow us to send domestic players abroad for training, competition, and to form the core of national teams. Furthermore, "exporting players" requires a specific strategy, accepting the high costs, and prioritizing quality to find players who are multifaceted and competitive enough to rival other countries. A combined effort from many dedicated club owners will naturally produce top-tier players capable of competing at the World Cup or the Asian Games…

Investing in football is, of course, a risky investment, as success is difficult even with a lot of money. But wealthy owners around the world continue to invest in and acquire football clubs, and only they know what they do afterward. Certainly, football benefits, as do the fans and players. A whole range of business models related to football also benefit. Talented individuals gain opportunities through investment and business, becoming famous in the marketplace and strengthening their brands through football, an activity that attracts billions of people – special and willing customers worldwide.

Football and club owners are therefore two sides of the same coin in the fascinating and captivating story of the round ball. Hopefully, one day, Vietnamese football will have club owners with enough strength and dedication to reach regional and continental levels.

People aspire for Vietnamese football to reach a higher level, but in reality, to achieve that, it must first require the increased power of club owners like Mr. Duc and Mr. Hien... Only then can we have a fundamental and modern youth training system, only then can we have talented players who go abroad to learn and compete, only then can we have skilled coaches who can guide, persevere, and sustainably build upon the legacy, continuously developing and raising the level to gradually catch up with the rest of the world...