Vice President Tran Anh Tu resigns, putting the VFF in a difficult position.

On the afternoon of March 13th, Mr. Tran Anh Tu submitted his resignation from his positions at the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and the Vietnam Professional Football Joint Stock Company (VPF). The businessman decided to step away from 11-a-side football and focus solely on women's football and futsal.

This news came as a shock to fans because Mr. Tú is a figure who has left a significant mark in recent times.

Expertise gap

From a professional social organization perspective, the VFF needs more businesspeople in key leadership positions to increase its prestige and resources for the development plans of Vietnamese football in the near future. The late president, Le Hung Dung, was such a person.

In recent years, it has been Mr. Tran Anh Tu's turn to demonstrate his role in the development and commercialization of football.

Mr. Tran Anh Tu has requested to resign from his positions at VFF and VPF.

Co-managing the work at VFF and VPF, the businessman born in 1963 helped Vietnamese football overcome several sensitive and difficult periods stemming from the general impact of society. Essentially, the teams gradually gained more revenue from football, television broadcasting rights prices increased, and the image and brand of the V.League improved significantly.

Mr. Tran Anh Tu has had a long and continuous career in football. Besides futsal, women's football is also one of his areas of expertise. Success came continuously, and he embarked on rebuilding the Ho Chi Minh City FC, and further, taking steps towards joining the VPF (Vietnam Professional Football Joint Stock Company). This is the major difference between him and the most successful futsal leader in history.

With his extensive expertise, Mr. Tu also has the resources to invest whenever he deems it necessary. As long as the plan is sound, Mr. Tran Anh Tu will find a way to secure funding. In fact, using personal funds to address public needs is not uncommon.

When Mr. Tú left, the Standing Committee of the VFF Executive Board, 9th term, found it difficult to fill the void in the position of Vice President in charge of professional affairs. A Vice President in charge of professional affairs who owns a large and successful business and is decisive in investment is considered a "rare find".

Returning to the "golden land"

There's no denying businessman Tran Anh Tu's success in managing the V.League and national teams. However, 11-a-side football is always challenging and fraught with risks. Having decided to retire and focus on business and investing in futsal and women's football, Mr. Tu is essentially returning to the golden land that built his brand and business.

Mr. Tran Anh Tu is returning to futsal and women's football.

Mr. Tú began pursuing futsal in 2007. Just nine years later, a historic milestone occurred when the Vietnamese futsal team qualified for the 2016 World Cup with an outstanding performance against Japan.

In 2021, the Vietnamese futsal team once again had the honor of competing on the international stage. Thai Son Nam Club, owned by Mr. Tu, reached the top 3 in Asia three times and was the runner-up once.

It is still widely believed that Mr. Tú is the "Midas" of Vietnamese futsal – everything he touches turns to gold.

Besides indoor competitions, Mr. Tú also invests heavily by consistently being an annual sponsor of the national women's football championship. In 2020, a memorable milestone occurred for Vietnamese women's football. The Sơn La team was at risk of withdrawing from the tournament midway due to lack of funding, and their sponsor refused to sponsor them.

Through a friend, Mr. Tú learned of the story and immediately used his own money to cover the team's living expenses until the end of the tournament. In return, all Coach Lường Văn Chuyên and his team needed to do was give their best performance.

Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City – two hubs for training young women's football players – have also found significant support.

Each person makes their own decisions at different times. When businessman Tran Anh Tu concludes his journey in professional football, he can think about the more pleasant feelings he experiences with futsal. The talent and contributions of this electrical equipment distribution businessman to Vietnamese football have long been recognized.

Mai Phuong

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/pho-chu-tich-tran-anh-tu-tu-chuc-vff-vao-the-kho-ar931316.html