Difficult situation of Hanoi volleyball

"Difficulty makes cleverness" can make Hanoi volleyball team nameless on the map of top volleyball in Vietnam next year.

Hanoi players (in yellow shirts) compete with great effort in phase 1 of the 2025 National Volleyball Championship. Photo: Y Van

sunk to the bottom of the table

In 2023, Hanoi volleyball enjoyed great joy when both the men's and women's teams of the Hanoi Sports Training and Competition Center (now the Hanoi Sports Training and Competition Center) under the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports participated in the highest level of national volleyball - the National Volleyball Championship. However, in the 2024 season, the Hanoi women's volleyball team was relegated and the men's team was only sure to stay in the highest level after the relegation round.

At that time, the reason why the Hanoi women's team was relegated was pointed out, that is, lack of funds and lack of human resources to survive in a harsh playground like the National Championship. The young, "homegrown" players trained by the club itself with an average age of under 20 were really immature, needing experienced players, foreign players to lead and accompany them on the field. And, when they did not meet those conditions, due to lack of funds to hire/buy experienced players, the Hanoi women's team had to accept relegation.

The problem of the Hanoi women's volleyball team is also the problem of the Hanoi men's team. Perhaps, the Hanoi men's team has more experience in the game, so they have continuously succeeded in staying in the league.

But the team's problem still remains: Lack of funds to hire quality foreign players while other teams participating in the national championship all have 1-2 impressive foreign players. That is the unfortunate reality for Hanoi volleyball when there is no sponsor, only relying on funding from the budget. And in the budget expenditures, there is no category for hiring foreign players, so the team has to rely on domestic players, although everyone understands that just one high-quality foreign player in the squad can help them turn the game around against other teams.

By this year's season, the prediction of the difference between having and not having foreign players in the squad is increasingly evident through the results of the Hanoi men's team in the first phase of the 2025 National Volleyball Championship. Not better than other teams in terms of domestic player quality, not having foreign players, plus the fact that mainstay Vu Ngoc Hoang could not play due to injury, the Hanoi men's team lost all 5 matches in the first phase, sinking deep to the bottom of the rankings.

How to overcome difficulties?

Head of the Volleyball - Basketball Department (Hanoi Sports Training and Competition Center) Bui Dinh Loi has shared many times that, to escape the financial and human resources difficulties, there must be more funding from socialized sources. That funding source can help increase the monthly income support for players, so that they do not have to be labeled as "poor", having the lowest income in the top volleyball village of Vietnam. That funding source can also be used to hire foreign players to fill the gap with other teams. Unfortunately, due to the team's limited communication and marketing, attracting investment is limited. A few months ago, it seemed that the team could "find a relationship" with a bank, but at the last minute it did not come true because the parties could not find a common voice in the investment method.

Up to now, the financial difficulty is still evident before the Hanoi men's volleyball team. The team's domestic players are still playing well, highly appreciated by experts, but cannot overcome their opponents because they lack foreign players capable of supporting the team in difficult times. Even insiders have to admit that the team has never faced such difficulties as now. And, the risk of relegation has never been as great as it is now.

What is expected now is the establishment of the Hanoi Volleyball Federation, which can help teams attract social resources. Most of the necessary preparations for the establishment of the Federation have been completed, especially in terms of personnel, only waiting for the decision to establish the Federation from the competent authority. The longer this process takes, the less hope there is to escape the current difficult situation.

Of course, in addition to establishing the Federation, Hanoi volleyball still needs support from the governing units, as well as maintaining the motivation to improve from within the teams themselves.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/the-kho-cua-bong-chuyen-ha-noi-697996.html