{"id":7573,"date":"2021-06-15T14:50:34","date_gmt":"2021-06-15T06:50:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesmartlocal.com\/vietnam\/?p=7573"},"modified":"2022-03-23T11:40:10","modified_gmt":"2022-03-23T03:40:10","slug":"vietnam-football-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesmartlocal.com\/vietnam\/vietnam-football-history\/","title":{"rendered":"The History Of The Vietnam Football Team: From Underdogs To Bulldogs"},"content":{"rendered":"

Vietnam football history \u2013 a summary<\/h2>\n
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The Vietnam National Football team is the talk of the town right now, and they surely deserve all the credit.<\/p>\n

Their impressive performance last Friday in the second round of the World Cup 2022 Qualifiers nailed home a 2-1 victory against Malaysia<\/a>, securing them the top spot in group G.<\/p>\n

With this, our boys are almost guaranteed a spot to move on to the next round, where they\u2019ll compete for a chance to participate in World Cup 2022.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s safe to say, Vietnam is emerging as a new powerhouse in the regional football scene.<\/p>\n

But this success did not come overnight \u2013 it is the fruit of generations of efforts. To understand just how far Vietnam\u2019s football scene has gone, let\u2019s look at a brief history of the Vietnam National Football team<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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Early history & post-war recovery (1896-2006)<\/h3>\n
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\"vietnam
\nVietnamese football players and a French official in the early 20th century<\/em>
\nImage credit: Wikipedia<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Football was first introduced to Vietnam in 1896 by the French, who had occupied the country at the time. Over the next half-century, the sport would go on to spread widely throughout many provinces, though it was mostly limited to casual matches between local clubs.<\/p>\n

When Vietnam was divided into the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in the north and the Republic of Vietnam in the south in 1954, each government created its own national football team. Still, as the country was still at war, neither team was particularly active.<\/p>\n

After South Vietnam\u2019s fall in 1975, the two football teams were united into what would become the Vietnam National Football team as we know it today.<\/p>\n

However, the aftermath of the war pretty much slowed down football development in Vietnam. The team only rejoined international competitions in 1991, when it participated in the 16th SEA Games held in the Philippines.<\/p>\n

\"vietnam
\nFootballer V\u0103n Quy\u1ebfn (center), who scored the game-winning goal against South Korea in a historic 2004 victory<\/em>
\nImage credit: thethao247<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Between then and 2006, Vietnam regularly participated in several regional tournaments. Barring a few bright moments such as a surprising win against South Korea in the 2004 AFC Asian Cup qualification, the team was met with little success.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until 2007 that Vietnam\u2019s football scene began to show promise.<\/p>\n

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The first golden era & recession (2007-2017)<\/h3>\n
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\"vietnam
\nVietnam team winning the AFF 2008 Championship<\/em>
\nImage credit: VTV<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

In 2007, Vietnam hosted the AFC Asian Cup 2007 and became the only Southeast Asian team to advance to the quarterfinals. Though the team then lost to eventual champion Iraq, its impressive run was considered a success.<\/p>\n

The following year, Vietnam won the AFF Championship title after defeating Malaysia, Laos, Singapore, and Thailand. It was a moment that went down in history as the first time the Vietnam football team won an international title.<\/p>\n

Alas, it\u2019d take us another decade to repeat this achievement. \u00a0Following the glorious victory, the team entered into a receding phase, suffering multiple disappointing runs in the 2010 & 2014 World Cup qualifiers, as well as the 2011 & 2015 Asian Cup qualifiers.<\/p>\n

\"coach
\nCoach Nguy\u1ec5n H\u1eefu Th\u1eafng (in white) had to resign after Vietnam failed to move past the group stage in Sea Games 2017<\/em>
\nImage credit: Ng\u01b0\u1eddi Lao \u0110\u1ed9ng<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Fans\u2019 discontent culminated in 2017, after Vietnam team didn\u2019t even make it past the group stage in the year\u2019s Sea Games tournament. Coach Nguy\u1ec5n H\u1eefu Th\u1eafng was forced to step down amidst the backlash.<\/p>\n

It was during this crisis that South Korean coach Park Hang-seo<\/a> stepped in and saved the day.<\/p>\n

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A new hope (2017-present)<\/h3>\n
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\"coach
\nCoach Park Hang-seo hailed when Vietnam won a gold medal at Sea Games 2019<\/em>
\nImage credit: VNExpress<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Following his appointment, Park Hang-seo was met with skepticism, and the challenges he faced only served to fuel more questions of his ability.<\/p>\n

Indeed, during the 2018 AFC U-23 Championship, Vietnam was considered a massive underdog, having been put into a tough group against strong opponents such as South Korea and Australia.<\/p>\n

But Park Hang-seo would go on to prove all his doubters wrong.<\/p>\n

Under his leadership, the team made it out of the group stage and advanced to the quarterfinals. Not stopping there, they made it all the way to the grand finals after defeating Iran and Qatar in resounding victories that sent millions of fans to the streets celebrating.<\/p>\n

\"vietnam
\nMillions of fans parade the streets with flags to celebrate Vietnam’s victory against Qatar in 2018<\/em>
\nImage credit: D\u00e2n Tr\u00ed<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Though the team then had to yield the championship title to Uzbekistan after a hard-fought battle in unfavorable weather conditions, they were hailed as heroes.<\/p>\n

Just months later, Park also led Vietnam to their second AFF championship title \u2013 the first since 2008.<\/p>\n

\"vietnam
\nVietnam team holding the AFF Cup 2018<\/em>
\nImage credit: VNExpress<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

The team\u2019s international recognition was further reinforced in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.<\/p>\n

There, they defeated the heavily favored Team Jordan with a surprising score of 4-2 in the round of 16. Unfortunately, their run ended in the following quarterfinals after a close 0-1 defeat against South Korea.<\/p>\n

Still, Vietnam\u2019s growing success on major international stages has made them a force to be reckoned with in the region \u2013 as their impressive run in the ongoing 2022 World Cup qualifiers<\/a> has proven.<\/p>\n

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Let\u2019s continue to support our national team<\/h3>\n
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The Vietnam National Football team has certainly faced many ups and downs throughout its history, but we\u2019re glad to see our boys going strong.<\/p>\n

Perhaps it isn\u2019t that far-fetched to see them appearing in the World Cup one day.<\/p>\n

But let\u2019s not get ahead of ourselves. For now, Vietnam has a tough match against the UAE ahead of them. The outcome of this match will decide who tops Group G once and for all.<\/p>\n

So, don\u2019t forget to tune in at 11.45PM on 15th June to show your support.<\/p>\n

For more stories, check out:<\/p>\n