Khatoco Khanh Hoa off to a flying start

With 2 wins and 1 courageous draw after the first 3 rounds of the 2026 - 2027 National First Division football tournament (V-League 2), Khatoco Khanh Hoa is breathing fresh air into the coastal city's sporting life. Although not highly rated, coach Vo Dinh Tan and his players are writing the first pages of a very promising season. Beyond just achieving good results, the hunger, passion, and fiery competitive spirit are being revived by Khatoco Khanh Hoa. 

On the afternoon of October 18, in round 3 of V-League 2, Khatoco Khanh Hoa's new recruit Oleksandr Kurakin once again stepped up to score the only goal of the match, securing 3 points for the coastal team in their away match at Long An. This was the 3rd goal scored by the 1.92m-tall striker after just 2 appearances for Khatoco Khanh Hoa.

In the stands of Long An Stadium, more than 40 passionate supporters who traveled overnight for hundreds of kilometers from the coastal city to the Southwest region to rally behind their home team were perhaps the ones who enjoyed the most complete joy. The journey back was filled with singing and spirited tactical discussions well into the night. The coastal team and their fans were overjoyed with the positive results. Excitement and optimism also spread across Khanh Hoa football fanpages and community groups. Happy with the victories, happy with the good results. But what brought the greatest joy was witnessing once again a Khatoco Khanh Hoa playing with fiery intensity, enthusiasm, and a certain open-hearted, unpretentious spirit true to the traditional "character" of Khanh Hoa football for generations.

Alongside the congratulations, praises, and radiant smiles, Khanh Hoa football lovers still harbor a lingering sense of concern. Everyone understands that modern professional football is a race of financial power. The gateway to promotion to V.League 1 is a great dream. It is also the ultimate goal of many teams competing in the National First Division. But everyone realizes that staying afloat in V-League 1 demands substantial resources, systematic investment in youth development, and off-pitch factors. The hard-learned lessons of the past prompt both the coaching staff and Khanh Hoa football fans to remind themselves: take steady steps, manage carefully within their current means, play with dedication, and gradually build up for the long haul.

The sentiments of football fans in the coastal city are completely understandable. The history of football here is an emotional journey filled with ups and downs. In the 2000 - 2012 period, Khanh Hoa football was relegated twice consecutively (from the National Championship down to the First Division in 2001, then down to the Second Division in 2002). It was not until Khanh Viet Corporation (Khatoco) provided support that the team staged a strong revival and returned to V.League in 2006. Throughout the six seasons that followed, they were an “unruly team” that feared no one; especially when facing big clubs, Khatoco Khanh Hoa played with even greater flair. But then, due to off-pitch turmoil at the end of the 2012 season, the team's journey had to come to a halt. The entire coaching staff and players were transferred to another locality. That was a low note in Khanh Hoa's football history.

Yet, the love for football in the coastal city kept smoldering, only waiting for an opportunity to flare up fiercely. Just over 1 year after the aforementioned low note, under the guidance of coach Vo Dinh Tan and bearing the name Sanna Khanh Hoa - Bien Viet Nam, the team pulled off the miracle of "two promotions in two years" (champion of the 2013 Second Division, runner-up of the 2014 First Division) to return to V.League 2015. The pinnacle of this journey was the V.League 2018 bronze medal, a time when they were likened to a "dark horse"—the most troublesome stumbling block for every giant thanks to their fiery counter-attacking defensive style.

Subsequent fluctuations in the 2019 - 2024 period, from relegation in 2019, rising to First Division runner-up in 2022, to struggling once again in the 2023 - 2024 season, forged a Khanh Hoa football spirit that never gives up. Every time they faced storms, the flame of passion flared up again from the young talents themselves and the enduring love of the fans.

Perhaps having gone through so many ups and downs, more than ever, behind today's resounding victories lies a sincere and burning wish: Wishing that the hometown team can build a sustainable financial foundation, along with the joined hands of authorities at all levels, sectors, and the business community; wishing that youth development is invested in methodically… Khatoco Khanh Hoa have every right to dream of a day returning to the top tier of the tournament with a confident, dignified, and solid posture. The bustling cheers on the stands of August 19 Stadium will continue to echo far and wide. Football in the Land of Agarwood will surely continue striving to rise and believing in welcoming bright signals ahead.

CONG DINH