Suspended V. League may be postponed until 2022

By Lam Thoa July 17, 2021 | 09:35 pm PT

Hoang Anh Gia Lai forward and national player Nguyen Van Toan in V. League 2021. Photo by VnExpress/Duc Dong.

Organizers have proposed that the V.League is moved to February 2022, considering the Covid-19 situation and the national football team’s schedule for the final World Cup qualifying round.

The Vietnam Professional Football (VPF) JSC agreed with the proposal Saturday and the issue now awaits a decision by the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF).

If the VFF approves the proposal, the league will resume in February 2022 and conclude in March. However, several clubs are not happy with the proposed move.

"From now until the league continues, we will still have to pay the players and give them bonuses. The club can go bankrupt. The VPF needs to make a financial commitment to the clubs. If they feel the league cannot be resumed, they should cancel this season and start a new one next year," the director of a northern club told VnExpress.

On average, a club spends VND1-2 billion ($43,000-86,000) a month on salaries, bonuses and other overheads.

V. League 2021 was suspended on May 7 after some players of Song Lam Nghe An had indirect contact with a Covid-19 case. The VPF planned to resume the tournament on July 31, but the ongoing Covid-19 wave prevented it.

At present, after 12 rounds, Hoang Anh Gia Lai top the table with 29 points. When the 13th round concludes, the league will enter its second phase, where six top teams of the first phase will be in group A to fight for the title, while the bottom eight will join the relegation battle in group B.