Hoang Duc wins the Vietnamese Golden Ball award for the third time in 2025.
Surpassing his younger teammate Dinh Bac by a margin of 75 points, midfielder Nguyen Hoang Duc officially achieved a hat-trick of Golden Ball titles at the awards gala on the evening of December 26th.
The race for the 2025 Vietnamese Golden Ball award officially concluded on the evening of December 26th with midfielder Nguyen Hoang Duc emerging victorious. This marks the third time in his career that the player born in 1998 has lifted the prestigious individual award.
Nguyen Hoang Duc's overwhelming score
With 353 votes, Hoang Duc surpassed his strongest competitor, young striker Nguyen Dinh Bac, to win the Golden Ball. Dinh Bac finished second with 278 votes, receiving the Silver Ball award after an impressive year of effort at various youth national team levels.
Although Dinh Bac received strong public support before the awards ceremony, the final result showed that experts highly valued Hoang Duc's role. The midfielder displayed consistent performance, leading Ninh Binh to victory in the First Division and maintaining their leading position in the V-League this season.
Praise for the promising young player.
Immediately after the awards ceremony ended, Hoang Duc shared heartfelt words of encouragement with Dinh Bac. The Ninh Binh player affirmed that his younger teammate is a very promising young talent for Vietnamese football.
"This year, Dinh Bac and the Vietnam U22 team performed exceptionally well at the Southeast Asian U23 Championship and the SEA Games 33. I wish him and the team continued success in the upcoming Asian Championship finals," Hoang Duc shared.
Nguyen Dinh Bac's arduous journey
As for Nguyen Dinh Bac, the striker born in 2004, despite only winning the Silver Ball, still expressed his happiness from Qatar. He sent his deepest gratitude to the SLNA training academies, Quang Nam Club, Hanoi Police Club, and the coaching staff of the U22, U23, and senior Vietnam national teams.
Many experts believe that Dinh Bac's ranking behind his seniors may be due to votes prioritizing players with extensive experience and consistent contributions to the national team over younger players. However, the Silver Ball award is a well-deserved recognition for his explosive performance in 2025.
Besides his personal efforts, Hoang Duc's success is also thanks to the support of LPBank – an organization that consistently backs Vietnamese sports with a systematic and long-term investment vision.
