HÀ NỘI — FIFA President Gianni Infantino recognised and praised Việt Nam’s efforts to develop football in recent years during his one-day visit to the Southeast Asian country on Wednesday.

He met Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc and worked with leaders of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in the morning.

He said they talked about sports development in the country and how to take it to new heights. He toured around the Việt Nam Youth Football Training Centre, which was one of the projects receiving sponsorship from FIFA.

He recognised the development of men’s and women’s football through the success of the U20 team who won the right to compete in the 2016 World Cup, the women’s squad who are to play at the upcoming Asian championship finals and the U23 side  at the recent continental competition.

Infantino said to harvest more success in the future, Việt Nam, represented by the Việt Nam Football Federation, should keep working, keep its eyes on facilities important to football and strongly invest in the sport.

The leader of the world football governing body said the increase in the number of World Cup participants to 48 in 2022 would be a great chance for Asia and Việt Nam to also make their dreams come true.

VFF President Lê Hùng Dũng highlighted projects initiated across the world to develop football, such as Goal Project, FAP and FIFA Forward, under Infantino, since he took charge in 2016.

It is scheduled that FIFA will send its experts to Việt Nam to carry out a long-term programme focusing on women’s junior football development in March. — VNS