When will Thong Nhat Stadium stop being flooded by heavy rain?

The Nepal-Vietnam match in the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup at Thong Nhat Stadium on the evening of October 14 had to be postponed for 30 minutes because the pitch was flooded due to heavy rain. When will this image disappear?

Thong Nhat Stadium staff push water out of the field - Photo: NK

On the evening of October 14, the Vietnamese team beat Nepal 1-0 at Thong Nhat Stadium in the second leg of the final qualifying round of the 2027 Asian Cup.

This match had to start 30 minutes later than the original schedule, to help the organizers push out the water that had accumulated in many puddles on the field after the prolonged heavy rain.

The image of Thong Nhat Stadium staff having to divide into many groups to push water out of the field attracted much public attention. Because this was an official match of the Vietnamese team in the continental playground.

However, the flooded pitch is not a new phenomenon at Thong Nhat Stadium recently. Many V-League matches or friendly matches have also witnessed similar flooded pitches during heavy rains.

Director of Thong Nhat Sports Center Nguyen Huu Thanh said: "The field surface being flooded and not draining in time due to heavy rain is a long-standing issue, not a new one. The reason is that the field's drainage system is old, and continuous heavy rain will further affect the drainage."

"But this time it's actually better, because we've been cleaning the ditches around the yard for a while now. But usually after it rains, it takes more than an hour for the yard to drain the water," Mr. Thanh added.

The Vietnamese team competed with Nepal on Thong Nhat Stadium with water still on the pitch, even though some of the water had been pushed out before the match - Photo: NK

Thong Nhat Stadium is seriously degraded.

Thong Nhat Stadium was built and put into operation in 1931. After 94 years, the stadium has only been repaired and renovated once in 2004 to serve the 2006 National Sports Festival.

Since then, Thong Nhat Stadium has not been repaired or renovated again, leading to serious deterioration.

Stands A, C, D have deteriorated over time, the functional rooms have also seriously deteriorated, affecting the living and training process of athletes. Stand B is no longer able to withstand the load and has been forced to stop operating since 2021.

For grass fields, the drainage system of the field is no longer working effectively, the ground is compressed with hard sand over time, making it more difficult for water to drain quickly.

Spectators filled the stands at Thong Nhat Stadium for the Nepal - Vietnam match - Photo: NK

Implementing the plan to renovate Thong Nhat Stadium

At the end of 2024, the plan to renovate and upgrade Thong Nhat Stadium was approved with a total estimated cost of 149 billion VND.

The renovation of Thong Nhat Stadium aims to meet the needs of competition, training and coaching of high-performance athletes, serving sports training for the people; and at the same time serving the 2026 National Sports Congress.

Accordingly, the three stands A, C, D will be renovated with functional rooms such as athlete rooms, VIP rooms, doping testing, medical , hygiene... In addition, Thong Nhat Stadium will build new stands B, C1, D1 with a scale of three floors.

The field and running track area will have new asphalt surface, drainage system, grass surface, and the grass field at both ends of the goal will be expanded.

Wait until when?

According to the previous plan, the site of Thong Nhat Stadium was handed over for construction in January 2025. After 10 months of implementation, the project will be put into use in December 2025.

However, until now, everything has not been able to be implemented. Therefore, the matches in V-League, First Division, friendly matches or most recently the final qualifying round of Asian Cup 2027, the image of the B stand without spectators looks very depressing. And on the field, when it rains heavily, the field is flooded, making it difficult for the players to compete.

In addition to administrative procedures at many stages and adjustments to investment policies, the delay in starting the project is also due to adjustments to the 1/500 planning. Including the addition of a parking garage design for the three newly built stands B, C1, D1, leading to a total estimated investment cost of more than 300 billion VND.

Director of Thong Nhat Sports Center Nguyen Huu Thanh said that the project to renovate and upgrade the stadium will start in the first quarter of 2026. "We are trying to push it forward, if possible, we will do it in early January 2026."

At a press conference earlier this year, Mr. Dinh Tran Anh - Director of Project Management Board 2 under the Management Board of Investment and Construction of Civil and Industrial Works of Ho Chi Minh City - said that it is expected that investment procedures will be completed by November to start the project.

Mr. Dinh Tran Anh said that to serve the 2026 National Sports Festival, the running track, field, and stands A, C, and D will be completed before October 2026.

Stands B, C1, D1 will be completed by the end of 2026 and the entire project will be handed over to Thong Nhat Stadium Management Board in early 2027.

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NGUYEN KHOI

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/san-thong-nhat-bao-gio-het-ngap-vi-mua-lon-20251016121442734.htm