Ho Chi Minh City: First time organizing international 7-a-side football tournament

7-a-side football is a branch of football created by Vietnamese people. After many years of domestic development, 7-a-side football officially had a turning point, the "Vietnamese specialty" was welcomed by international visitors.

7-a-side football, first originated from the street football field in the North. With the characteristics of bouncing ball competition like the 11-a-side field, but the field is smaller, has fewer people, is less expensive, suitable for the development of the sports movement among the whole population. In 2013, 7-a-side football was first introduced into the grassroots tournament with the founder of Vietfootball tournament.

With moderate investment and attracting diverse players, many businesses and organizations started to establish teams. 7-a-side football developed rapidly throughout the central and southern regions, where previously only 11-a-side football and futsal were played.

Recognizing the strong development of this new type of competition, in April 2021, the Vietnam Sports and Physical Training Committee officially issued the Law on 7-a-side football. The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) officially recognized 7-a-side football as a competition under its supervision.

After developing in Vietnam, Vietfootball has introduced 7-a-side football to federations in the Southeast Asian region many times. After testing and seeing the potential for development, the Football Association of Thailand officially established the 7-a-side Football Federation. Malaysia also began to establish its own team.

On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day September 2, VFF and Vietfootball organized the 7-a-side international football tournament Bia Saigon Dragon Cup 2025 between the teams of Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia. The tournament started on August 15 and ended on August 17 at Gia Dinh Stadium - Binh Thanh Ward.

This is the first time the international 7-a-side football tournament has been held in Ho Chi Minh City, with the expectation of further developing the football created by the Vietnamese.

Source: https://bvhttdl.gov.vn/thanh-pho-ho-chi-minh-lan-dau-tien-to-chuc-giai-bong-da-quoc-te-7-nguoi-20250815094937375.htm