On the morning of December 14, the 24th meeting of the 18th term of the Thanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee continued on its third working day. At the meeting, Mr. Do Minh Tuan, Chairman of the Provincial People’s Committee, gave a speech to address the concerns of the Provincial People’s Council members and voters.
Regarding the comments made by Mr. Cao Tien Doan, Chairman of the Thanh Hoa Football Club, about the challenges in investment policies for infrastructure and rewards for the team, the Provincial People’s Committee Chairman acknowledged and highly appreciated the efforts of the club’s management and their achievements over the past time.
“Initially, people considered Thanh Hoa as a weak team, but we got better with each game. Some economically developed localities have disbanded their teams, but our team remains strong,” Mr. Tuan shared. “Our province may be poor, but our football team is thriving.”
According to the Provincial People’s Committee Chairman, in recent years, the province has invested significantly in sports infrastructure, and the Dong A Thanh Hoa Football Club has also made considerable investments. While not grandiose, the Thanh Hoa Stadium is among the top stadiums with a beautiful turf field.
Current stadium of Thanh Hoa Football Club
Mr. Tuan stated that while the turf and running track are beautiful, they are old and cannot be expanded on all four sides. The province has planned to build a large sports center in the coming time.
“We have already designed a beautiful stadium in Quang Thanh Ward, Thanh Hoa City, similar to Old Trafford (the home stadium of Manchester United Football Club in the United Kingdom). We will attract private investors and promote socialization to make this happen,” Mr. Tuan said.
Addressing Mr. Cao Tien Doan’s feedback about the dim stadium lights and concrete benches, the Provincial People’s Committee Chairman assured that the province has allocated VND 40 billion to address these issues, and the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism will promptly resolve them.
Earlier, on December 13, during the discussion session, Mr. Cao Tien Doan, Chairman of Dong A Thanh Hoa Football Club, proposed that the investment in the team was not commensurate with their achievements. Specifically, he mentioned the outdated lighting system, lack of training grounds, concrete benches for spectators, and low rewards for the team.
The current reward system is based on standards from five years ago, when a bowl of pho cost VND 5,000, but now it costs VND 50,000. Other provinces reward their champion teams with tens of billions of dong, while our reward is only VND 1 billion,” said Mr. Cao Tien Doan.
Thanh Hoa, located in the North Central Coast region, spans over 11,000 km2, making it the fifth-largest province in Vietnam. With a population of 3.72 million people (as of 2022), Thanh Hoa is the most populous province in the country, following only the two centrally-controlled municipalities of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.
