The promotion race is intense.

With 1.5 promotion spots and three teams showing ambition, the 2025-2026 First Division League, which kicks off today (September 19), promises to be very exciting.

Minh Vương (left) during the victory against Becamex TP.HCM in the qualifying round of the 2025-2026 National Cup - Photo: TTĐN FC

Strong contender Truong Tuoi Dong Nai

This is said because Truong Tuoi Dong Nai (TTDN) Club has bought many quality players to serve its goal of promotion.

Among their 12 new recruits are many names who have previously played for the Vietnamese national team or U23 team, such as Minh Vương, Xuân Trường, Hữu Tuấn, Trần Quang Thịnh, Hồ Thanh Minh, Cao Trần Hoàng Hùng...

Notably, the quality of the players in the Southern Vietnam team is spread across all three lines. Their attack also has an abundance of talented strikers.

Besides Cong Phuong, Luu Tu Nhan (last season's top scorer), and Le Thanh Binh, the two newcomers Ho Thanh Minh and Alex Sandro (Brazil) have shown they are equally dangerous. Alex Sandro has already scored in the National Cup and has shown he will perform even better in the First Division.

More importantly, the team is led by a talented coach, Nguyen Viet Thang, who previously led Ninh Binh Club to an absolute championship victory in the 2024-2025 First Division League. With both skilled players and a talented coach, TTĐN is the number one contender for the championship.

Challenges from Bac Ninh and Quang Ninh

While not spending as much as the Southern Vietnam Football Federation, the two clubs Bac Ninh and Quang Ninh have also shown depth in their squads and are fully capable of competing for promotion.

Prominent in the Bac Ninh Club's lineup are former national team players or experienced V-League players such as goalkeeper Huynh Tan Linh, midfielder Nguyen Hai Huy, forwards Ngan Van Dai, Ha Duc Chinh, Mai Xuan Quyet, Pham Van Thanh...

In addition, the team from Kinh Bac also took full advantage of the regulations by bringing in Swedish-Vietnamese midfielder Eddie Tran and Brazilian striker Kaina Nunes.

Kaina Nunes possesses an impressive physique (1.96m tall) and superior aerial ability, making her a formidable threat to any domestic defense. This is especially true in the First Division, where teams prioritize reserving their single foreign player slot for a foreign player.

Notably, Bac Ninh is the only team led by a foreign coach. Coach Paulo Foiani, a Brazilian who briefly coached Hanoi Police FC in the 2023 season, is expected to help Bac Ninh FC deliver an impressive performance and secure promotion. Therefore, Bac Ninh FC had a rather impressive start before entering the First Division.

Notably, they secured two victories against higher-ranked teams, Hanoi Police 1-0 (Mai Xuan Quyet scored) and Truong Tuoi Dong Nai 2-1 (Kaina Nunes scored a brace) in two friendly matches.

Meanwhile, although Quang Ninh FC's squad is not on par with TTDN or Bac Ninh, they also harbor ambitions of promotion.

Coach Nguyen Van Dan also has former national team players at his disposal, such as Vu Minh Tuan, Nghiem Xuan Tu, Mac Hong Quan, Bui Van Hieu... Therefore, a single misstep in the long race could unfortunately see one of the three candidates eliminated from the competition.

Live broadcast schedule for the two opening matches on September 19th: Khanh Hoa - Long An (5 PM, FPT Play live broadcast), Quy Nhon United - Van Hien University (6 PM, FPT Play live broadcast).

First time having foreign players.

Because Hoa Binh FC withdrew from the league just days before the opening, the organizers had to conduct the draw for the 2025-2026 First Division League schedule twice. Since only 12 teams are participating, the VFF and VPF have decided to award only 1.5 promotion spots to the V-League next season instead of the originally planned 2.

Accordingly, the champion team will receive direct promotion. The runner-up will compete in a play-off match against the second-to-last team in the V-League 2025-2026 to determine the 14th team to participate in Vietnam's top football league in 2026-2027.

This is the first season since 2014 that first-division teams are allowed to register one foreign player. This promises to bring a higher level of professionalism to the league.

NGUYEN KHOI

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cang-thang-cuoc-dua-thang-hang-2025091909504293.htm