HCM CITY — Many football agents have expressed their frustration about the lack of English on Vietnamese football websites.
An English coach in London has even sent emails to Viet Nam News, requesting contact details for top flight V-League teams. He said he could not find a website of any club.
"I wish to contact them about the possibility of inviting a few players who play professionally and semi-professionally in the UK for trials, as they would love to play in the V-League. Unfortunately, I cannot find any of the teams websites," wrote London-based Qayum Shakoor.
Shakoor recommends players to professional clubs, like Arsenal and other premiership clubs at the youth level.
Some of them have gone on to become first-team players like Fabrice Muamba.
A search of websites found that only one club has a proper website in English, Hoang Anh Gia Lai.
They have just launched an independent website with basic information in both English and Vietnamese.
"Websites benefit us in some ways. Some players have come to our club for a trial through the website," said Nguyen Tan Anh, manager of Hoang Anh Gia Lai.
He said the club did not need to spend money going to another country to seek foreign players.
Some other clubs like Dong Tam Long An also have websites but all of them are in Vietnamese only. Moreover, the websites are outdated and badly designed.
"Vietnamese football clubs should have websites with Vietnamese and English information about the club and its activities," Damir Corusa, director of a Bosnian sport and travel agency, said.
"The websites will benefit the club in many ways, including promoting its image, attracting sponsors and helping sport agents like us," said the owner of the website filida.ba who was here to watch the National Cup final between Hoang Anh Gia Lai and Song Lam Nghe An last weekend. — VNS
