A Vietnamese satellite television station definitely missed a learning opportunity by ignoring the heavy criticism drawn by state-run VTV (Vietnam Television) for inviting scantily clad girls with little-to-no football knowledge to offer ‘commentary’ on the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Pay TV K+ might have missed the mark when they chose to air “Tien Tri Nuoc Nga” (Russian Prophet), a pre-match program featuring a seal which predicts the score of each match. 

But fear not. If a seal predicting a football match isn’t bizarre enough, you can always focus on the emcee and her miniscule bikini. 

It’s a classic combination: football, sea creatures and bikinis…right?

Each day, K+ films the prediction at an indoor swimming pool where the seal chooses the flag of one of the two countries in the upcoming match to win the game. 

The seal can also choose a white flag to signify its prediction for a tie.

The program is being broadcast daily during the network’s 11:30 am Sports News program from June 14 to July 15 on K+ and live-streamed on its Facebook page.

Ahead of Wednesday’s game between Portugal and Morocco, Thu Hang, the program’s MC, appeared confident and poised as she stood in her tiny black bikini, holding a miniature globe next to a child-sized basketball hoop while discussing a sea creature’s prediction for a highly anticipated football match.

The two-piece swimsuit probably could not have been any smaller, so the female wrapped a see-through white cloth around her hip in what appears to be a half-hearted attempt at modesty.

This screenshot shows an emcee in a pretty sexy black bikini in a program on Vietnamese pay TV K+.

Commenter on a Facebook video of the program posted to K+’s Facebook were unsurprisingly significantly more opinionated on Hang’s outfit choice than the sea dog’s prediction on who would win the match.

“I come here every day because of the MC,” read one comment, earning 57 likes and reactions.

“Overdone breast-contour,” another commented.

“Actually, I don’t care about the sea dog, I just like looking at the MC,” one chimed in.

The video received a total of 874 shares and 589 comments as of this article’s publication.

Despite the rude comments, the MC continued swapped out her black bikini for an even smaller orange swimsuit for Thursday’s Argentina – Croatia.

The scenes where she sat or stood in the revealing tiny pieces of cloth somehow managed to top her risqué performance from the previous day.

The video, after being uploaded on the Facebook page of K+, was again hit with hundreds of comments about on the MC's body, many of which are too ill-mannered to be reprinted by Tuoi Tre News.

Those who opted away from rude comments weren’t shy in voicing their offense to the program, with one commenter posting “Why does K+ make its MC dress like that on a broadcast? I cannot understand your way of thinking.”

“Stop this nonsense,” another Facebook user suggested.

A screen capture of the female host sitting on the side of the swimming pool during the show’s recording. Photo: Tuoi Tre.

Previously, the MC had appeared on the June 15 edition of the show in a modest long-sleeve trainer's jacket.

The video of that day’s edition received a mere 33 shares and nine comments.

Addressing the controversy over the MC’s revealing outfits, a representative of K+ told Tuoi Tre that the MC is an experienced host for the network and denied the ‘beauty-guest’ format of the show.

“The program is shot at the swimming pool and the MC may have to jump into water to play with the seals during the recording, so swimwear is totally suitable for scene,” the representative asserted.

The MC appears on the June 15 edition of the show in a modest long-sleeve trainer's jacket. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!