After much speculation, teams for the football play-off match were announced on Tuesday by the Viet Nam Football Federation (VFF). After much speculation, teams for the football play-off match were announced on Tuesday by the Viet Nam Football Federation (VFF).

VFF’s statement on its website said that Navibank Sai Gon and Quang Ninh Coal would play on September 5 at Chi Lang stadium in Da Nang to determine the last slot in the V-League 2011.

According to an agreement signed by all 27 V-League and First Division clubs at the beginning of the 2010 season, if the number of clubs operating as businesses in the First Division is less than 10, only the champion will be promoted to the top-flight competition, and the runners-up will have to play the play-off.

First Division runner-up Quang Ninh, instead of being promoted directly to the V-League, will play against V-League’s next-to-last Navibank Sai Gon, who struck it lucky to compete in the play-off match thanks to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC)’s requirements.

Since the season 2011, AFC, Asia’s football governing body, requires all teams in the V-League to operate as businesses. VFF set a deadline for all teams to complete their procedures until 5pm on August 31.

As of that day, VFF said that only two V-League clubs, Cao Su Dong Thap and Lam Son Thanh Hoa, had completed procedures to be businesses. As a result, V-League now has 13 clubs as businesses while the First Division has eight clubs.

Source: VNS