Spending money like Vietnamese football style

Bac Ninh FC released about 10 players who had contracts before the 2025/26 season began. Each of them had a minimum "signing fee" of 500 million VND, which means they wasted up to 5 billion VND on wrong signings.

About a month before the new season started, the newly emerging wealthy Bac Ninh FC signed contracts with roughly 40 players. The saying “rich because of rice, bold because of money” fits perfectly.

In fact, Bac Ninh FC’s situation is not new in the history of Vietnamese professional football. Binh Dinh FC was allocated more than 300 billion VND over three years starting from the 2021 season with sponsor Hung Thinh Land, but after their first V-League season, they nearly spent it all. That’s why the Vo land team weakened in subsequent seasons, couldn’t keep their key players, had to sell assets, and now are “temporarily” in the national First Division.

In 2018, when Nam Dinh returned to the V-League, they also received heavy investment for a long-term plan. However, the Nam team then faced financial shortfalls, the coaching staff gradually left, and it was uncertain if they would reunite next season. Until Xuan Thien Group came and changed history, Nam Dinh football was always chaotic, with Thien Truong stadium’s roof missing and the pitch resembling a plowed field.

Truong Tuoi Dong Nai has become a phenomenon and a major powerhouse in Vietnamese club football. With strong players and coaches, promotion to the V-League seemed like a sure thing for them. But caution is needed regarding their spending habits, and their future remains uncertain.

In the 26-year history of Vietnamese professional football leagues, it’s common for clubs to appear briefly and then suddenly disappear. Worse, some club owners have been wanted or arrested. Few may remember Hai An United about 15 years ago, but many surely recall the arrest of the Thanh Hoa club’s owner.

Quang Nam FC ended its over 30-year existence after parting ways with its sponsor. Before that was Quang Ninh in 2021. More than a decade earlier, there were Vissai Ninh Binh, and before that Hung Vuong An Giang, Kienlongbank Kien Giang, Navibank Saigon, XMXT Saigon, even Hanoi ACB... Vietnamese professional football still heavily depends on club owners and investors simply because the sport cannot yet sustain itself.

There is still plenty of money in society. But how to use that money, especially for sports in general and football in particular, is a different matter.