Football, like many other sports, always has controversy. A penalty blow, a red card, an offside situation, a decision to ignore a foul can change the course of the match. Fans have the right to disagree, have the right to analyze, refute, and express frustration. But the boundaries are very clear: Reacting to professional decisions is one thing; insulting dignity, cursing, threatening referees is unacceptable behavior.
5 years ago, the story of a part of overzealous Vietnamese fans who once flooded into the social media account of referee Ali Sabah, who officiated the match between UAE and Vietnam, to insult and even threaten, is a sad example. When a referee has to lock his personal account because of being attacked online, it is no longer football emotion, but a deviation in cheering culture.
Participating in social networks requires high responsibility. Every comment, every threat, every act of dragging each other into other people's personal pages to attack leaves traces and can cause real harm. A curse that seems to be "to vent anger" can contribute to creating a wave of cyber violence. A threat that seems to be "saying for fun" can scare others, cause mental harm and make them feel unsafe.
In March 2026, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism issued a Code of Cultural Conduct in the Digital Environment, which emphasizes the requirement: "When participating in discussions and criticisms in the digital environment, it is necessary to show respectful attitudes, civilized and polite communication, use civilized and proper language, dialogue, and images, not vulgar, not offensive, not insulting or attacking individuals; do not speak ill of or defame organizations and individuals; do not use words, sounds, and images that cause hatred, incite violence, gender discrimination, regional discrimination, ethnicity, religion, or culture.
Vietnamese football is preparing to enter the ASEAN Cup 2026 and most recently the friendly match between the Vietnamese team and the Myanmar team. Vietnamese fans have repeatedly created beautiful images: Going to the streets to cheer in order, dyeing the stands red, singing the national anthem with pride, accompanying the team in both winning and losing, let's remind each other: Knowing how to respect opponents, referees and rules of the game, we are truly worthy fans of the team we love.
