Garcia names champs futsal side

Spanish coach Bruno Jose Garcia Formoso.

Spanish coach Bruno Jose Garcia Formoso heading up Viet Nam's futsal team has named 14 players to compete in the Southeast Asian Futsal Championships to be held in Malaysia today.

Most of the selected players have been chosen from Thai Son Nam Club.

In preparation for the event, the team has undertaken a short-training course in Thailand and had competed in four friendly matches.

The tournament, which will last until September 28, will attract the participation of 10 countries. Viet Nam, one of the region's top futsal competitors, will compete in group B, along with Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines and Thailand. Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, host Malaysia and Timor Leste will compete in Group A.

Viet Nam finished third at the same event last year.

Vinh bids farewell to SLNA

V-League side Song Lam Nghe An (SLNA) has chosen not to renew its contract with striker Le Cong Vinh due to financial difficulties, according to SLNA Football Joint Stock Company's general director Nguyen Hong Thanh.

"Vinh is ready to stay with SLNA, but financial limitations mean that we can't keep him," Thanh said.

The Nghe An-born striker Vinh said he was available to play for a new side, with his contract with SLNA ending last month.

One insider has said that Japan's Consadole Sapporo FC and a South Korean club are vying for the player.

Vinh, who is widely considered one of the best players in Southeast Asia, used to play for Sapporo FC under a loan contract two years ago.

The three-time Vietnamese Golden Ball player ranked No 5 on goal.com's top ten most promising youngsters in Asian football.

Vovinam team champs kicks off

The National Vovinam Top Teams Championships kicked off yesterday in the southern province of Ben Tre.

Nearly 400 athletes from 28 teams nationwide are competing in the men's and women's combat and performance event across various weight divisions.

Vovinam, which is a Vietnamese martial art, is practised with and without weapons. It varies between hard and soft movements and requires training the body and the mind.

The six-day event is being hosted by the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Viet Nam Vovinam Federation.

Asian Games athletes receive Dong Luc sportswear

Dong Luc Group, the sportswear manufacturer, has provided 300 outfits to Vietnamese athletes competing in the 27th Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea, from September 19 to October 4.

Huong Tra, the group's head of marketing, yesterday revealed that the outfits were issued in line with a sponsorship deal worth VND750 million (US$36,000).

The Group, which has an exclusive licence from English Mitre Sport International Company in Viet Nam, introduced the outfits to the athletes last Sunday.

The group has been a major sportswear sponsor for Vietnamese athletes in regional and world sport events, including the Southeast Asian Games, Asian Games and Olympics.

FIFA, the world football governing body, had approved Dong Luc's football products since 2006.