"There are no forbidden zones in the fight against negativity"

VFF President Le Hung Dung affirmed this after the negative match-fixing and football betting scandal in the match between Than Quang Ninh and Dong Nai in round 21 of V-League was brought to light. According to the head of VFF, this is an opportunity to clean up the football industry, thereby regaining the trust of fans, investors and raising the level of development of the country's football.

VFF President Le Hung Dung

PV:Mr. Le Hung Dung, there is information that, before "catching the net" of negativity related to some Dong Nai players, the leaders of C45 had a discussion and wanted to know your opinion?

- VFF President Le Hung Dung:Since the corruption incident at V.Ninh Binh, I have had frequent discussions with C45 leaders to unify views on the fight against corruption in football. I told C45 leaders that, with their expertise and professionalism, they should help us clean up the country's football scene.

So, in your opinion, what significance does the discovery and exposure of the corruption involving the Dong Nai football players have in the fight against corruption that Vietnamese football is pursuing?

- On behalf of VFF and those who love clean, beautiful football, I would like to thank the C45 department for everything they have done, are doing and will do. This is truly a great achievement of C45 and has great significance in the fight against corruption in football. In the past, we called for a lot of anti-corruption but the results were not much. After the incident in Bacolod, corruption in football temporarily subsided for a while, but gradually, that ghost returned.

Many matches are considered by the public to have a “smelly smell” but no solution can be found. In particular, illegal betting lines have begun to target Vietnamese football because this is a potential market. Because they cannot find answers to their doubts, the negative people have become more reckless. Now, C45 has done what we have never done before, which is to infiltrate betting lines and find evidence that makes the negative people convinced.

I believe that, with our capacity and experience, C45 will find many worms and dark spots in football. That is also the premise for us to protect the Vietnam National Team at the upcoming AFF Suzuki Cup.

Sir, is VFF concerned that things will get out of control if the scope and subjects involved in negativity are expanded?

- My point of view is that there are no forbidden areas in the fight against corruption. Just think, if one person does it and five people destroy it, what will happen to Vietnamese football? What I fear most is that if we do not fight corruption resolutely, the corrupt people will hide and at some point continue to destroy football. At that time, Vietnamese football will not be able to develop.

I want to take this opportunity to bring Vietnamese football back to humane and transparent values. We may suffer losses and disruptions, but if we dare to face the bad, the trust of fans and investors will return. And that is also the condition for football teams to gradually survive on ticket sales, advertising and television copyrights.

Thank you for the conversation!

According to Bongdaplus