Vietnam’s U23 football "warriors" announced to receive about US$1.2 million bonus

By Nga Vu - Jan 30, 2018 | 08:53 AM GMT+7

TheLEADERDespite finishing runner-up at the 2018 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U23 Championship in Changzhou, China after losing 1-2 to Uzbekistan in the final, the U23 Vietnam team is still greatly awarded from many enterprises, firms and organizations to encourage their competition spirit and the historic victory.

Vietnam’s U23 football "warriors" announced to receive about US$1.2 million bonus
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc awards U23 Vietnam members and chief coach Park Hang-Seo

Coming back to Vietnam from the AFC U23 Championship, U23 Vietnam has been warmly welcomed by millions of fans from across the entire country.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc waited for five hours to welcome the players and coach Park Hang-Seo after the team had been on a massive parade over 30 kilometers from Noi Bai Airport.

"I have waited for more than five hours. There has never been such a long wait for a prime minister, but there has never been such great joy, either because people throughout the country have joined together today to cheer on their warriors,” Phuc said as he received the team. 

"Outstanding performance in the 2018 AFC Champion final is the highest achievement and the historic victory of Vietnamese football," Phuc emphasized.

Phuc appreciated the important role of coach Park Hang-Seo thanks to his excellent and magic instruction to Vietnamese football team.

The Prime Minister also hoped that Vietnamese football can build on this regional success to reach the World Cup one day.

U23 Vietnam, considered the underdog at the start of the AFC Cup, won numerous plaudits by beating top competitors to earn a place in the final. 

Besides silver medals, the team also won the Fair Play Award at the championship.

Thanks to the outstanding achievements that the team has obtained in the U23 AFC Champion, many enterprises, firms and organizations have been awarding to coach Hang Park-Seo and the players.

According to the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF)’s statistic, as of January 28, the total bonus presented to the U23 team was nearly VND23.7 billion (approximately US$1.2 million) from corporations such as the Vietnam Post and Telecommunications Group (VNPT), Phu Nhuan Jewelry JSC, FLC Group, etc.

Besides, the team is also honored to receive many rewards in kinds such as telephone, wristwatch and valuable services such as leisure, education from big companies as Samsung Vina Electronics, Garment 10 JSC, Sun Group, and so on.

Vietjet offers coach Park Hang-Seo and players one year of free flights on 38 domestic and international routes. The airline also sent its own aircraft to bring the team home on December 28, 2017.