Flares at the Olympic Stadium: You do it, you suffer

(Baonghean.vn) - It is very likely that for the first time, the Vietnamese team will lose a significant amount of bonus money after a somewhat unlucky victory at the Olympics (Phnom Penh) due to a flare error.

First of all, in the context of exhausted confidence, there were still many Vietnamese fans who traveled thousands of kilometers to Phnom Penh to cheer on coach Mai Duc Chung and his team in the match against Cambodia, which was a good sign. They created a wave of spectators and a heated atmosphere throughout the Olympic stadium, so that Quang Hai finally scored the 2-1 goal in the final minutes of the match.

However, the flares from some extremists have caused VFF more headaches because it is likely that a penalty from the AFC will be issued.

Flares are no longer a strange thing in the V-League stands, the Disciplinary Board has sentenced Hai Phong fans at least twice. Hai Phong fans have set off flares at Lach Tray Stadium, My Dinh, Hang Day, Thanh Hoa, Vinh, Quang Ninh… wherever they want.

This time, VFF is not the “judge” but the “insider”, AFC will be the judge. Previously, the act of vandalizing property and threatening the Indonesian team by Vietnamese fans at My Dinh at the end of last year resulted in VFF receiving a heavy penalty.

Professional conduct

When they saw the flares covering the stands of the Olympic Stadium, what did the AFC do? Very professionally, the AFC asked the stadium organizers to immediately identify who was the “author” of those flares and impose a penalty.

Flares at the Olympic Stadium (Phnom Penh). Photo: Internet

After this incident was reported by the Organizing Committee to the AFC, there will certainly be a penalty for the Vietnam Football Federation. It is known that this amount could be up to more than 10,000 USD and the Vietnam National Team may even have to play in an empty stadium in the match against Cambodia at Thong Nhat Stadium?!

The important thing is that AFC has enough evidence and prestige so that VFF and the media do not “cry out” when receiving information. It is not like the times the Disciplinary Board took action against the Hai Phong Fans Association, a verdict that the public considered a “long joke” and in fact could not be sanctioned.

Even the representative of Hai Phong Fans Association joked: "A verdict that never reaches the recipient, simply the Hai Phong Fans Association is a name that has never been born, has no address, no leader". The reality is that afterwards, many fans in red shirts, printed with royal poinciana flowers, still came to Can Tho away stadium, shouting and cheering under the witness of VPF officials, the organizer of V-League.

If you do not want to be fined again

Quite bitterly, a VFF representative shared that if the AFC imposes a heavy penalty, the ones who will suffer the consequences will be the members of the Vietnam National Team. Because the VFF can only cut down on the bonus for the victory that coach Mai Duc Chung and his team had to work very hard to get. It is truly “what you do, you suffer”!

Immediately, AFC officials summoned Mr. Quoc Tuan and Mr. Hoai Anh to resolve the incident. Photo: Internet

This is also not the first time the AFC has had to deal with violations from Vietnamese audiences. In other words, if there are no corrective and restrictive measures, after the AFC's penalty, there is no guarantee that fans will stop lighting flares and causing trouble.

Obviously, we must urgently strengthen the fan clubs of V-League and first division clubs to form the core of the Vietnam Football Fan Club.

For a long time, we have had the Vietnam Football Supporters Association operating in a self-proclaimed manner, spontaneously and loosely related to the fan “leaders”. Not to mention, some leaders of the Vietnam Football Supporters Association have not been able to find a common voice with VFF officials, if not to say they still have different opinions.

The AFC’s punishments for VFF are not simply economic matters. First of all, it is a matter of national honor. In addition to quickly reorganizing the fan association, it is necessary to take strong action against extremist individuals through gathering information and recording disruptive fans. For other countries, they can take strong action to ban them from going to the stadium, ban them from leaving the country to cheer for football, and even transfer the case to the police for handling.

N@T