Toot…toot…the referee blows his whistle to start the match, a sound that soon fades out amid the louder cheer from the crowd, the several hundred spectators who cover block A of the Rach Mieu Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City’s Phu Nhuan District on Wednesday. Upon the starting whistle, the players from the two teams immediately rush to fight for the ball, just like an ordinary mini-soccer match -- an indoor game with each team having five players and a goalie that lasts for less than 45 minutes. The players enthusiastically engage in the match, amid the cheers that are getting louder and louder. But there is an ‘abnormal’ thing about the players: they are opioid addicts who are receiving methadone treatment. The Wednesday match was in fact the finale of a football tournament held to demonstrate the positive effects of methadone on the patients’ lives. The competition gathered opioid patients from methadone clinics in five districts of HCMC and the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho. Thu Duc District played against District 4 in the finale, and from what the players displayed on the stadium floor, no one could ever imagine that they were intravenous drug users in the past.

 The players fight for the ball. Photo: Ngoc Dong

Methadone is a synthetic opioid, used medically as an analgesic and a substitution for use in patients with drug dependency. In treatment, it has cross-tolerance with drugs like heroin and morphine and can stabilize patients by mitigating drug withdrawal syndrome. With a proper dosage of methadone, patients can reduce or stop their use of heroin, morphine, and similar drugs. With the players being able to compete for as many as 40 minutes of the whole match, it has proven that the methadone treatment method has actually enabled drug users to stay healthy and become productive members of society. More importantly, as participating in the tournament means exposing themselves as drug users to the public, the players have shown that they can leave the discrimination behind, and integrate back into society as ordinary individuals.‘We can do what ordinary people do’ “We signed up for the tournament without the slightest hesitation,” Phong, a player from the District 4 squad, told TuoiTreNews while he and his teammates were warming up for the game. “This is the first time such an event has been held, and we are all excited to take part,” he added. Phong said the tournament is a chance to prove that drug users can be healthy and positive members of society, thanks to the methadone treatment. “It’s a common concept that drug users cannot even run, let alone play football. “But let us show them that we are really able to play football,” he said. Tung, a teammate, added, “Simply speaking, we can do what other people can.”

 A Thu Duc player poses for a photograph with his daughter and the trophy. Photo: Ngoc Dong.

This is not just a demonstration for society, as some want their family members to know that they can lead a normal and positive life. Hoang, also a District 4 team member, has never played at the event without being accompanied by his ten-year-old son. “He’s my source of energy and inspiration,” he said. “I also want to give the boy a positive impression…that I can still play football as other do.” Trieu Duy Khanh, a member of the Thu Duc team, meanwhile, played with cheers from his wife, Huynh Nhu. “He used to be a hot-tempered husband, and refused to integrate with society,” Nhu said. “But things have gradually changed along with the methadone treatment.”

 A wife of a Thu Duc player is pictured on the stadium stand. Photo: Ngoc Dong

The final ended with the Thu Duc squad securing a 5 – 1 victory over District 4. The tournament was sponsored by the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), in collaboration with the Ho Chi Minh City Provincial AIDS Committee, and Viet Community Development Co Ltd. “I believe these games demonstrate how the PEPEFAR-sponsored methadone maintenance treatment program has had a significant positive impact on the life and health of the patients, and on Vietnam’s effort to combat HIV,” US Consul General An Le said at the closing ceremony.Concern and hope “It’s great to see the players, who are former drug users, reintegrate into society,” the Consul General told TuoiTreNews reporters, while still wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with “Say no to HIV/AIDS”. “But what’s concerned me is the fact that the patients have done the treatment, but most of them are still unemployed,” he said. “I heard that there are employers in the audience watching this match, and I hope that they also recognize these individuals and have them employed in their companies.”

 US Consul General An Le poses for a photograph with players of the District 4 methadone football team. Photo: Ngoc Dong

Professor Wayne Wiebel, head of the Office of Health for USAID in HCMC, said another concern lies in community support. “What we need is support at the community level, at the family level to help people get rid of the drugs. “If they try to help themselves to get in treatment, but there’s no support, then they‘re likely to fail. “I think one of the key changes that we need outside the treatment is the community to support and help reintegrate them and welcome them back to the community.” The Consul General said this maiden football tournament was a success, and yet it is just a start. “I hope that we will have more tournaments in the future,” he concluded.