Football club chairman says focus must be on pandemic, not sport

The V.League 1 is still postponed indefinitely. — Photo zing.vn

HÀ NỘI — The chairman of one of Việt Nam's best-supported football clubs has come out against leaders of the other 13 V.League 1 teams for holding an online meeting about the future of the 2020 season.

Hoàng Anh Gia Lai (HAGL) chairman Đoàn Nguyên Đức told domestic media the focus of the whole country should be on beating the COVID-19 pandemic, not sport.

“The whole country is worried about the disease, now we have to respect the public health.

"I urge the participants of the meeting to stop. Now stop talking about football and sports, just the pandemic.

"I forbid HAGL to participate in any sports activities at this stage, including participating in meetings directly or online of the Việt Nam Football Federation (VFF) or VPF,” he said.

At the online meeting held by the Việt Nam Professional Football Joint Stock Company (VPF) today, most clubs supported the plan of holding the first half of the season in the north of the country only.

However, due to the pandemic, the event’s organising board hasn’t found a specific time to kick back off.

At the online meeting, the common view of clubs was to play only when it is safe.

Eight teams agreed that teams should play at seven stadiums in the north, without fans.

Matches will only be played in the north to limit movement by aircraft, avoiding the risk of infection.

The VPF’s chairman Trần Anh Tú said the VPF does not have a specific plan to restart the national premier league as the complex pandemic is developing daily.

"We agreed to wait for the disease’s development to decide the plan based on the majority consensus. In the near future, the VPF will continue to discuss the plan to prepare, to avoid the passive case when the pandemic ends so football can return soon, ” said Tú. — VNS