VFF names three presidential nominees: Nguyễn Đức Thụy, Trần Quốc Tuấn, Nguyễn Xuân Vũ

The Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) on Wednesday evening, 21 October, published the nominations for its 10th Executive Committee and Inspection Committee, which will serve the 2027-2031 term. Three people have been nominated for president: businessman Nguyễn Đức Thụy, incumbent president Trần Quốc Tuấn and current vice-president Nguyễn Xuân Vũ. The list, reported by Tuổi Trẻ, Thanh Niên, SGGP and Dân trí, also covers three vice-president posts, 31 nominees for the Executive Committee and six for the Inspection Committee.

Who is nominated for what

Birth years are from Tuổi Trẻ. Thụy is first vice-chairman of the board of Sacombank, a commercial bank, according to the list as reported by Tuổi Trẻ and SGGP, and Dân trí describes him as the man behind the rise of Ninh Bình, who currently top V.League 1 with 10 points after four rounds. Tuấn, who holds a doctorate in sports science according to Thanh Niên, has led the VFF during the current ninth term. Vũ is a VFF vice-president and a Sacombank vice-chairman; Thanh Niên notes he once chaired Phù Đổng, the club that became Ninh Bình, and now heads the Vietnam Table Tennis Federation for 2024-2029. Trần Anh Tú, the current technical vice-president and chairman of futsal club Thái Sơn Nam TP.HCM, was team leader when Vietnam won the ASEAN Cup in 2024 and 2026, Dân trí adds.

Thanh Niên expects a two-horse race

In a midday analysis on 21 October, Thanh Niên stressed that nomination is only a first step: nominees must submit a CV, a written agreement to stand and approval from their managing organisation, and presidential candidates also need a judicial record. Because Vũ was re-elected table tennis president on 3 August 2024, the paper argues he would need that federation's permission and that approval is "not likely". In that case, Thanh Niên says, the contest would come down to Tuấn and Thụy. That is the paper's reading; Vũ remains on the official list.

From nomination to congress

• 19 October: deadline for member organisations to submit nominations, according to Tuổi Trẻ.
• 21 October, evening: list published. Bongda24h quotes the VFF as saying it may still be updated because some original nomination forms sent on 19 October had not yet arrived.
• Next: the VFF asks each nominee whether they will stand; files are then sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism for vetting, Tuổi Trẻ reports.
• Before the vote: the congress can only go ahead with approval from Vietnamese authorities, FIFA and the AFC, under close FIFA supervision, and may be delayed if preparations stall.
• Congress: expected around December 2026 or January 2027, according to Tuổi Trẻ.

Voting is in person and by secret ballot, with no proxy or postal votes, Thanh Niên explains. With two or more presidential candidates, the winner needs the support of more than half of the official delegates present; if nobody reaches that in the first round, the lowest-placed candidate is dropped and voting continues until a president is elected. Dân trí adds that the congress will elect the president, three vice-presidents and the committee, after which the new president appoints the general secretary.

What comes next

Nominees now complete their files, and the VFF will fix the final candidate list, date and format of the congress once the ministries have finished their review. Our 20 October report on Nguyễn Đức Thụy's nominations has more background; more Vietnamese football news is in our football section.