On the morning of December 14, the 24th meeting of the 18th term of the People’s Committee of Thanh Hoa province 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 delegates and voters.
Regarding the comments made by Delegate 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 leadership and their achievements over the past time.
“Initially, people considered Thanh Hoa as a weak team, but they played better and better. There are localities with a developed economy, but their football team disbanded, while the Thanh Hoa team remained strong. Our team is poor, but they play better and better,” shared Mr. Tuan.
According to the Provincial People’s Committee Chairman, in recent years, the province has invested quite a lot, and the Dong A Thanh Hoa Football Club has also made significant investments. Although not grandiose, the Thanh Hoa Stadium is among the top stadiums with a beautiful turf field.
The current stadium of Thanh Hoa Club
Mr. Tuan shared that the turf and running track are beautiful but old, and there is no room for expansion. The province has planned a large sports center for 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.
In response to Delegate Cao Tien Doan’s feedback about the dim stadium lights and concrete benches, the Provincial People’s Committee Chairman informed that the province has allocated VND 40 billion to address this issue, and the Department of Culture, Sports, and Tourism will be responsible for promptly resolving it.
Earlier, on December 13, during the discussion session, Delegate Cao Tien Doan, Chairman of the Dong A Thanh Hoa Football Club, proposed that the investment in the team was not commensurate with their achievements.
Specifically, Mr. Doan proposed that the stadium’s lighting system was outdated and did not meet the standards, providing insufficient lighting for the athletes; there was a lack of training grounds; there were no benches, forcing spectators to sit on concrete ledges; and the rewards for the team were inadequate…
Currently, the reward system applied is from five years ago, when a bowl of pho cost VND 5,000, now it’s VND 50,000. Other provinces reward their champion teams with tens of billions of dong, while our reward is only VND 1 billion,” said Delegate Cao Tien Doan.
Located in the North Central region of Vietnam, Thanh Hoa province spans over 11,000 km2, making it the fifth-largest province in the country. With a population of 3.72 million people (as of 2022), Thanh Hoa is the most populous province in Vietnam, following only the two centrally-controlled municipalities of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.
