VFF protests against the Thai Football Federation for misusing the Vietnamese national flag

(Dan Tri) - VFF has just sent an official document to the Southeast Asian Football Federation (AFF) as well as the Football Association of Thailand (FAT), protesting and requesting clarification on the incident of incorrectly displaying the Vietnamese national flag.

The draw for the 2025 Southeast Asian U19 and U16 futsal tournament took place on the afternoon of October 28 in Nonthaburi (Thailand). Accordingly, during the draw, the Chinese flag was displayed instead of the Vietnamese flag on the Vietnam team's draw.

In a document sent to the AFF, the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) clearly stated its view that this serious incident could have consequences affecting Vietnam's image and negatively impact the solidarity of the ASEAN community.

The Vietnamese men's futsal team participated in both the U19 and U16 Southeast Asian tournaments in Thailand (Photo: VFF).

VFF requested the Southeast Asian Football Federation to clarify the cause of the above incident and ensure strict measures to prevent similar mistakes from happening again in upcoming events.

VFF believes that AFF is also fully aware of the seriousness of this incident and will handle it with the highest sense of responsibility, caution and professionalism.

Previously, during the drawing ceremony for the 2025 Southeast Asian U19 and U16 futsal championship held in Nonthaburi (Thailand), the Thai host organizing committee encountered a serious incident when displaying the Chinese national flag instead of the Vietnamese national flag.

Despite the error, the video of the lottery draw was only removed after nearly an hour, causing public outrage.

According to the draw results, at the 2025 Southeast Asian U19 Futsal Championship, the Vietnam U19 Futsal team is in Group A with host Thailand and Brunei. Group B includes Indonesia, Myanmar, Malaysia and Cambodia. The tournament will take place from December 23 to December 29 at the Nonthaburi Provincial Gymnasium (Thailand). The teams will compete in a round robin to calculate points in the group, selecting the top two teams in each group to enter the semi-finals to compete for a place in the final.

The 2025 Southeast Asian U16 Futsal Championship will feature five teams, including Thailand (host), Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar and Brunei. The teams will compete in a round-robin format to determine the top two teams to advance to the final, while the third and fourth-placed teams will play for third place. The tournament will be held at the same venue as the 2025 Southeast Asian U19 Futsal Championship, in Nonthaburi, Thailand.

This is the first time the Southeast Asian Football Federation has organized futsal tournaments at the U16 and U19 age groups, marking an important turning point for youth futsal in the region. This event opens up great opportunities for young players, in the context that Southeast Asia currently has no official playground dedicated to youth futsal.

According to plan, to prepare for the two upcoming regional tournaments, the Vietnam U19 and U16 futsal teams are expected to gather for training from November 16 in Ho Chi Minh City.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/vff-phan-doi-lien-doan-bong-da-thai-lan-dung-sai-quoc-ky-viet-nam-20251028185707875.htm