The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) has instructed that leaders of the Refereeing Committee are not allowed to act as supervisors.
On behalf of the Standing Committee of the VFF Executive Board, President Le Hung Dung issued a document officially requesting that the Head and Deputy Head of the Refereeing Committee temporarily refrain from directly supervising matches.
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| Head of the Refereeing Committee Nguyen Van Mui will temporarily no longer be allowed to supervise matches. Photo:Minh Chien. |
Specifically, the VFF President and Standing Committee have requested that the Head of the Refereeing Committee, Nguyen Van Mui, and the Deputy Head of the Refereeing Committee, Duong Van Hien, temporarily cease directly participating in referee supervision duties at matches in order to focus their time entirely on managing and supervising refereeing activities in general.
The refereeing scandal erupted after the V.League Round 7 match between HAGL and Khánh Hòa. In that match, referee Nguyễn Văn Kiên made a series of erroneous decisions, causing major controversy regarding the goals scored by both teams.
Following the match, HAGL and Chairman Duc reacted strongly. Mr. Duc called for referee Kien to be permanently suspended, while HAGL submitted a request to the VFF to review the case.
In addition, referee Nguyen Trong Thu and supervisor/Deputy Head of the Refereeing Committee Duong Van Hien also made a series of mistakes in previous matches. The VPF, headed by Chairman of the Board Tran Anh Tu, held a meeting and decided to suspend these three individuals from officiating in professional leagues until the end of the year.
From this point on, the conflict escalated. Both sides exchanged harsh words and criticized each other in the press. Things only calmed down this afternoon (May 10th) when Mr. Dương Văn Hiền decided to step down from his supervisory position at the National Cup.
In addition, the Standing Committee also requested that the Referee Committee evaluate, review, and reassign referees according to the correct principles, in line with their abilities and the nature of the matches. The Standing Committee also requested that the Referee Committee not assign referees who do not meet the professional and ethical requirements, as this could easily affect the prestige of the tournament and the trust of the fans.
In conclusion, the VFF requested the Referee Committee to strictly handle all instances of rough play and unsportsmanlike conduct by players on the field.
