FIFA President Gianni Infantino hailed Vietnam’s passion for football during a meeting with Vietnamese State President Nguyen Xuan Phuc in Geneva on Sunday, which was part of the latter’s ongoing visit to Switzerland.

The FIFA president said that through a shared commitment to structured development and foundations, Vietnam can seize its place on football’s global stage, the international football governing body reported on its website.

Sunday’s meeting examined topics that will accelerate the growth of football in the country, including FIFA’s availability to work with the Vietnam Football Federation on technical matters and the inspiration provided by the men’s national team in reaching the third round of qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

“Vietnam is an incredibly passionate country for football, and we welcome the support of President Nguyen Xuan Phuc in continuing this drive for participation,” FIFA quoted Infantino as saying.

“This qualification for the [FIFA] World Cup shows that Vietnam is very, very close to qualifying,” the FIFA president added, implying Vietnam’s first-ever competition in the ongoing final round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifiers. 

“I was in Saudi Arabia last week for the final of the AFC Champions League and I met with officials from the Saudi Arabian Football Federation who commented that against Vietnam, it was very, very tight, as all the results have been.”

Infantino meant to mention the recent qualifier between Vietnam and Saudi Arabia, in which the Golden Stars were defeated 0-1 in Hanoi on November 16.

“As of the FIFA World Cup in 2026, there will be eight Asian teams rather than four qualifying," President Infantino continued. 

“We have doubled the number of Asian teams and this gives a real chance to teams like Vietnam, who work very hard at youth level, to play at a FIFA World Cup and also, the FIFA Women’s World Cup.”

As the next edition of the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand will feature 32 teams for the first time in 2023, according to the FIFA leader, the expansion will encourage member associations to further strengthen their technical development and infrastructure in order to compete in the international arena.

For his part, President Nguyen Xuan Phuc said that “no other sphere has an impact like football has and the power of sentiment that it has to bring nations together.” 

“It evokes a special spirit and more and more people from around the world love football and it attracts the attention of people across the generations,” FIFA quoted Phuc as saying. 

“I fully support the idea of the [FIFA] President that we shouldn’t only take care of [developing] one part, but indeed all corners of the world.”

At the end of the meeting, FIFA President Infatino presented President Phuc with special gifts, including a FIFA ball and a No. 10 jersey bearing the Vietnamese leader’s name.

Phuc commenced his official visit to Switzerland on November 25 and will conclude it on Monday.

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