2026-2027 National Cup: Four V-League Clubs Fall and the Logic of Priorities

Two weekend days, eight qualifying matches, and four clubs currently playing in the V-League left the 2026-2027 National Cup at the very first gate. Three of those four defeats came on home soil, where they should have had their strongest footing. What stands out is that none of these results truly surprised anyone who follows Vietnamese football closely at this moment.

Only one V-League representative advanced on opening day, and they needed a 3-2 win away at a first-division side. Aside from Bac Ninh, the other four representatives, Thanh Hoa, Hoang Anh Gia Lai, Hai Phong and Hong Linh Ha Tinh, all bowed out. Judged purely by the scorelines, this looks like a shocking weekend. But once those results are weighed against what is happening behind the scenes, the picture becomes far clearer: this is not a shock, but the inevitable consequence of a long-established way of allocating priorities.

The results that cannot be ignored

Bac Ninh was the only V-League side to do its job. They beat Long An 3-2 away, a result that was far from easy, since Long An, despite playing in the first division, remains a club with tradition and a squad rated reasonably highly. But the other four defeats are the real focus of the round.

In Thanh Hoa, the hosts lost 0-2 to Becamex Ho Chi Minh City, a club just relegated to the first division and a strong candidate for promotion back. In terms of squad depth, Becamex Ho Chi Minh City was not inferior to the hosts at all, and was even rated slightly better in several positions. What mattered more, though, was the spirit. The visitors entered the match with clearly greater determination, while Thanh Hoa looked sluggish and short of ideas. The 2-0 win was not difficult for Becamex Ho Chi Minh City, and the scoreline accurately reflected the game.

In Quy Nhon, on a temporary ground while Pleiku Stadium undergoes pitch renovation due to poor drainage whenever heavy rain falls, Hoang Anh Gia Lai lost 2-3 to Hung Yen. The mountain-city club did not have its usual home support and faced a Hung Yen side full of ambition. The match reflected the gap clearly. The visitors went 3-1 up by the 77th minute, before Hoang Anh Gia Lai pulled one back from a penalty in the 90th+4th minute. That goal was merely consolation, as there was not enough time left to create a miracle.

At home, Hai Phong lost 0-1 to Thep Can Tho, a club that had just relocated from Quang Ninh to the western capital and had just lost its opening match of the 2026-2027 first division season. The only scorer was striker Thaileon, who had joined the club just days earlier. The goal came in the first half, but it was enough to decide the match. For Hai Phong, this defeat revealed a lack of preparation for a secondary arena.

In Phu Tho, Hong Linh Ha Tinh drew 0-0 with the hosts after 90 minutes, then collapsed 2-3 in the penalty shootout. It is a scenario every club wants to avoid, as shootouts always carry an element of luck.

Behind Thanh Hoa's defeat lies a bigger problem

In terms of consequences, Thanh Hoa's defeat is the focal point of the round. The Thanh-based club only learned it still existed just before the 2026-2027 V-League kicked off. Its squad was limited by a tight budget, preventing it from retaining key players or bringing in quality signings.

Then the matter involving Jamaican striker Rimario Gordon landed. FIFA required Thanh Hoa to pay more than 305,000 USD, equal to about eight billion dong, after the striker filed a complaint with FIFA. The document was sent on September 16, and if the case is not resolved within 45 days, the club will be banned from registering new players for three consecutive transfer windows.

The paradox is that this sum arose during the tenure of the previous sponsor, while the club has now been transferred to a new sponsor. The boundary of responsibility between the two eras remains an unanswered question, and the 45-day deadline keeps ticking away. For a club already struggling financially, a potential transfer ban is a direct threat to its survival battle. In modern football, a transfer ban amounts to a competitive sentence: the club cannot reinforce, while its direct rivals can.

This is the clearest proof of the consequences of loose financial governance. The debt arose in the old tenure, but the fallout threatens the new one. The lesson about transferring responsibility between sponsors, and about the need for a transparent resolution mechanism, is being raised for the entire Vietnamese professional football system.

Hoang Anh Gia Lai and a season full of storms

What is worrying about Hoang Anh Gia Lai is not this defeat, but the wider picture. The club began the 2026-2027 V-League with two straight losses. This season's squad is rated even weaker than last year's. Under coach Le Quang Trai, the mountain-city side is facing a relegation battle from the very first rounds.

In that context, exiting the National Cup early may actually be good for Hoang Anh Gia Lai. No longer having to split its strength across two arenas, the club can pour all its resources into the V-League, where it must fight for survival every season. For Hong Linh Ha Tinh, this defeat was also not too surprising. The club began the 2026-2027 V-League at an acceptable level, with one win and one loss. Saving strength for the survival race remains a more sensible choice than chasing an arena it can hardly reach the end of. Hai Phong is in a similar group.

Why V-League clubs grow ever more indifferent to the National Cup

For many V-League clubs, especially those without title ambitions, the National Cup is not a primary arena. The deeper they go, the greater the travel and accommodation costs. The squad problem also becomes more complex when rotation between two arenas is required. Meanwhile, staying in the V-League matters far more. A survival spot means preserving revenue, maintaining the club's existence, and keeping sponsors' trust.

Faced with that choice, concentrating on the more important battle is understandable. It is precisely this indifferent approach that has opened the door for first-division sides to cause upsets. First-division representatives enter the National Cup with greater determination, because it is a chance to prove their ability against higher-division opponents. The gap in motivation is sometimes greater than the gap in quality.

Another way to read these defeats

There is another way to read last weekend's round. Rather than seeing it as a sign of weakness among V-League clubs, it can be read as reflecting an increasingly clear stratification in how clubs define their goals. A club without title ambitions will weigh carefully between going deep in the National Cup and saving strength for the V-League.

When financial resources are tight, an early exit from a secondary arena can be a sensible management decision, even if it goes against fan expectations. The blind spot here is how some football watchers interpret defeat. For a club straining to avoid relegation, losing in the National Cup is not a tragedy. The real tragedy is relegation, losing revenue, and falling into a spiral of financial crisis. This reading is not meant to excuse sloppy preparation, but to distinguish between tactical failure and governance failure.

Based on my experience following matches across many seasons, rounds like this always repeat a familiar pattern: the team that enters the pitch with clearer motivation usually wins, regardless of its position in the table. Position reflects squad quality over the long term. Motivation reflects will in a specific match. In a cup competition, where a single match decides everything, motivation often overrides position.

What lies ahead

The 2026-2027 National Cup continues with later rounds, and the clubs that have exited will return to focus on the V-League. For Thanh Hoa, Hoang Anh Gia Lai, Hai Phong and Hong Linh Ha Tinh, the real battle has only just begun. From a broader perspective, the stratification between clubs with ambition and clubs that merely want to survive is reshaping how Vietnamese football operates. The National Cup, a traditional arena, is gradually becoming a place where big clubs no longer want to belong for long.

Will an early exit truly help clubs focus better on the survival race, or is it merely a justification for sloppy preparation? The answer lies in the coming rounds of the V-League, where every point is worth survival. And for Thanh Hoa, the answer also lies in whether it can settle the 305,000 USD debt before the 45-day deadline closes.