Saigon FC kicks first in Da Lat

On February 20, Saigon Club sent an official letter to Vietnam Professional Football Joint Stock Company (VPF) confirming its participation in the 2023 First Division with the name Saigon. At the same time, this team announced to choose Da Lat stadium - at address 1 Xo Viet Nghe Tinh, ward 7, Da Lat city, Lam Dong province - as the home ground for the matches in the 2023 season.

Before that, Saigon Club was expected to be transferred to Lam Dong. However, according to regulations, the application for converting a non-professional football club into a professional club must be approved by the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) at least 60 days before the opening date of the tournament. Lam Dong is playing outside professionally, in the Second Division, and could not change its name when the First Division will open in 40 days.

In fact, Saigon FC was still transferred to Lam Dong, but because of regulations, this team could not change its name according to the new locality. Saigon FC will use the second-class players of Lam Dong and the team of Thai coach Issawa Sitong to participate in the 2023 First Division.

With Saigon FC confirmed to still attend and Can Tho resign due to lack of sponsorship and move down to the Third Division, the 2023 First Division has only 11 teams left. These teams include Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Hoa Binh, Hue, Long An, Pho Hien, Phu Dong, Phu Tho, Quang Nam and Saigon.

The tournament is expected to start in April 2023. After the first phase, the tournament will be divided into groups, with the top five teams competing for the championship, and the remaining six teams racing to avoid relegation. The champion team will receive two billion VND, the runner-up team and the third place team will receive one billion VND and 500 million VND respectively.

Today, February 22, in Hanoi, VPF will conduct a draw and schedule matches for the tournament.