The aforementioned solution was adopted by the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) during a meeting on Wednesday to discuss organisational plans for the country’s professional football tournaments in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Specifically, the first phase, scheduled for June 6 - August 2, will be played in a round-robin format with 13 match days. Upon the conclusion of the tournament, the 14 participating teams will be classified into two groups for the second phase, relative to their points and other statistics, such as goal difference, the number of goals scored, the number of yellow cards, and the number of red cards.
The top eight teams from the first phase will constitute Group A of the second phase, slated for August 14 - October 25, while the remaining six teams make up Group B.
The round robin format will be applied to both groups, with Group A teams battling it out for the overall trophy, and the Group B representatives competing against one another to avoid the sole relegation place.
Similarly, the National First Division Tournament will take place in two phases from June 6 to September 26. Meanwhile, the National Cup will maintain its knockout format.
Members of the VFF Executive Committee also approved a maximum of five substitutes for each team as recommended by FIFA. To reduce disruption to the match, each team will have a maximum of three opportunities to make substitutions during the game.
