Thanh Hoa soccer players go on strike in Vietnam over unpaid salaries and bonuses
Players at Thanh Hoa soccer club in Vietnam have gone on strike over unpaid salaries and bonuses, with the team also withdrawing from the inaugural season of the AFC Champions League Two.
Located 150 kilometers (93 miles) south of the capital Hanoi, Thanh Hoa had qualified for the continental competition — which kicks off in September — after winning the Vietnamese Cup in July.
“The players have been on strike for three days already and have stopped training,” Thanh Hoa coach Velizar Popov told The Associated Press on Tuesday. “Like always, I fully support the players and I’m behind them 100%”
More than 20 players at the club, which plays in the top-tier V. League 1, signed a statement that was released on social media Tuesday. It said the collective amount that the players were owed had climbed to around $640,000 over the last two seasons.
“Players and coaching staff members always face late salaries, bonuses and contract fees,” the statement said. “But we always maintain high professionalism, winning two national cups and one Super Cup in consecutive years.”
The club has reportedly said the money owed to the players is closer to $400,000, adding that it needs more help from the government of Thanh Hoa province.
Popov, Thanh Hoa's Bulgarian coach, would like to see that happen.
“The local provincial government has a big responsibility as it does not support the club in the way that other provinces do,” Popov said. “We are the only club in Vietnam who trains in the stadium as we don’t have a training center.”
Thanh Hoa has been replaced in the Champions League by Muangthong United of Thailand in a big blow to Popov, who led New Radiant of the Maldives to the quarterfinals of the 2013 AFC Cup.
“For me it was the most important target this season,” Popov said. “I was very motivated to participate and to play against the best teams from Japan, China and Korea.
“But to be honest if we’re so poor and can’t pay players, then we have no place to compete with the best teams in Asia.”
It adds to a disappointing year for soccer in Vietnam, a country of almost 100 million that is passionate about the sport. The national team lost all three games at the Asian Cup in January and was then eliminated from 2026 World Cup qualification in the second round.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
