Hanoi, 16 April 2026 – Vietnam women’s national team has appointed a new head coach after a decade under Mai Duc Chung.
Coach Hoang Van Phuc has signed a contract with the Vietnam Football Federation running until the end of the SEA Games 34 in September 2027. In 2026, the team will focus on preparations for the 2026 Asian Games, scheduled to take place in Japan.
Hoang Van Phuc becomes the 11th coach in the history of the Vietnam women’s team, including interim managers. Domestic coaches have included Tran Thanh Ngu, Nguyen Kim Thanh, Mai Duc Chung, Tran Ngoc Thai Tuan, Ngo Le Bang, and Vu Ba Dong, while foreign coaches have featured Rainer Willfeld (Germany), Steve Darby (England), Chen Yun Fat (China), and Takashi Norimatsu (Japan).
The VFF had previously considered appointing high-quality foreign coaches from Japan, but financial constraints proved to be a major obstacle.
Born in 1964, Hoang Van Phuc was a former center-back who played for The Cong, Military Region 3, and Vietnam Railways. He retired in 1996 and moved into coaching, later earning the AFC Pro License.
At club level, he managed Hanoi ACB, Quang Nam, and Sai Gon FC—teams that have since been dissolved. His greatest achievement came in 2017 when he led Quang Nam to the V.League 1 title.
Phuc has also been involved with national teams since 2008, winning the AFF U16 Championship that year and later guiding Vietnam at the 2012 AFC U19 Championship. In 2013, he signed a two-year deal to lead both the senior and U23 national teams but resigned after Vietnam’s early exit at the SEA Games in Myanmar.
Since 2021, he has worked at the Hanoi Youth Football Training Center and had a stint as technical director and interim coach of Hanoi FC. From 2024, he joined the women’s national team as an assistant to Mai Duc Chung, signaling a planned transition.
Under Mai Duc Chung’s leadership over the past 10 years, the team achieved historic success, including qualification for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, the 2019 AFF title, and four SEA Games gold medals (2017, 2019, 2021, 2023). His final tournament was the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, where Vietnam exited at the group stage.
VSN/RPT
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