Kuala Lumpur: Asian Football Confederation (AFC) President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa has congratulated Vietnam on the rapid strides it has taken in the development of football.
Concluding his recent visit to the AFC Member Association from the ASEAN Zone, the AFC President thanked Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) President Le Hung Dung for Vietnam’s commitment to participation and, in particular, the organisation of AFC competitions.
Shaikh Salman said: “I sincerely thank VFF for organising so many of our tournaments, as Vietnam hosted the finals of the AFC Futsal Club Championship 2017 and many other qualifying competitions in this calendar year.
“The progress is clear to see. This comes only with a capable leadership and stability, for which the VFF President Le Hung Dung deserves credit.
“There is marked progress in club competitions as well as national team competitions - both men’s and women’s, including futsal. We must also recognise the efforts of the VFF to preserve football’s integrity.
“Hopefully in the future, we will see Vietnam being regulars in Asian Cup finals and the AFC Champions League.”
During his visit, the AFC President met the Honourable Deputy Prime Minister HE Vu Duc Dam and Deputy Minister for Culture, Sports and Tourism HE Le Khanh Hai.
At the VFF Headquarters, VFF President Le Hung Dung expressed his gratitude for Shaikh Salman’s visit to Hanoi.
The VFF president said: “The positive words expressed by President Shaikh Salman have further motivated us and we also want to assure the AFC that Vietnam is keen to be actively involved in the Confederation’s drive to achieve the goals set out in the AFC Vision and Mission.
“For the AFC to become the best, the Member Associations also need to be the best, so our target is to raise the standard of football by participating in and hosting competitions.
“There has been a massive concentration on grassroots football as well as education and I thank the AFC for all the support that has been given to Vietnamese football so far,” said the VFF President.
In addition to Vietnam organising the AFC Club Futsal Championship 2017, VFF also hosted the AFC U-23 Championship 2018 Qualifiers, AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2018 Qualifiers as well as the AFC Futsal Championship Qualifiers ASEAN Zone 2017.
Source: the-afc.com