Vietnam police charge 21 in betting case over fixed Long An FC football and VBA basketball games

Vietnam's Ministry of Public Security has charged 21 people with gambling in a case that police say combined offshore sports betting with fixing domestic football and basketball games, including matches played by Long An FC.

In a statement published on its official portal on November 11, 2026, the Ministry of Public Security said its Criminal Police Department (C02) had identified a group led by Vu Chi Cong, also known as Vu Chi Konh, born in 1998, a Ukrainian national living in Ho Chi Minh City. According to the ministry, the group bet on international football and on matches in Vietnam's First Division, the national U19 championship and the National Cup.

The allegations have not been tested in court.

Searches in August, case opened August 27

The ministry said C02 was assigned a dedicated investigation after reporting the group to ministry leaders. On August 16–17, 2026, C02, working with the ministry's Department of Operational Techniques, the Mobile Police Command and local police, summoned people and carried out emergency searches in Ho Chi Minh City, Bac Ninh and Hung Yen. C02 opened the criminal case on August 27 for gambling in the form of fixing the results of sports matches, covering conduct in Ho Chi Minh City, Tay Ninh, Bac Ninh, Hung Yen and other provinces.

So far, 21 people have been charged with gambling. Police seized VND2,000,000,000 (VND2 billion), 28 mobile phones and other documents and items, the ministry said.

How police say the group operated

According to the ministry, from 2024 Cong and Pham Thanh Chung agreed to buy betting tips on matches already fixed by foreign nationals, sort out which could be bet on, move the money and bet together. Cong hired several people to place bets for him. Through Nguyen Duc Ninh, who police say specialised in collecting and renting out VIP-level betting accounts, the group rented accounts belonging to others. Cong also paid three people to bet on his instructions on offshore websites. Vietnamese newspaper Thể thao & Văn hóa, reporting the C02 announcement, named the sites as including M88, OK9, BK8 and FB88.

Police allege that Cong directed Hoang Nhat Nam, a member of Long An FC's coaching staff, and Hoang Danh Ngoc to arrange for Long An players Nguyen Thanh Hai, Nguyen Anh Tai, Le Van Hung and Bui Hoang My to underperform and fix scores to a script Cong supplied, so that he could bet on certain Long An games. Cong then paid Ngoc, Nam and the players, the ministry said. Vietnamese media reports of the C02 announcement, including Thanh Niên, said investigators cited Quy Nhon's 4-1 win over Long An in the First Division on October 3, 2025 and Nam Dinh's 2-0 win over Long An in the National Cup on November 23, 2025.

Basketball game in August

The ministry said that in August 2026, Vo Hoang Minh Nhat, one of the people charged, agreed with Cong to arrange the results of some games in the Vietnam Basketball Association (VBA) and pass the betting information to Cong. Police say Nhat met Nha Trang Dolphins players Vo Huy Hoan and Huynh Vinh Quang and Da Nang Dragons players Son Minh Tam, Mai Phuoc Thinh and Lam Minh Duy, and that they agreed to fix the August 15, 2026 game between the two teams. According to the ministry, Nhat and the players were paid, and the money Cong staked ran to billions of dong.

Football federation suspends Long An individuals

C02 said it had asked the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) to step up monitoring and to prevent and deal with misconduct in football. In a statement on November 11, the VFF said the Ministry of Public Security's investigation agency had charged and detained members of Long An FC who played in the 2025/26 professional season. After receiving the prosecution decision, the VFF Disciplinary Board suspended the Long An individuals involved from all VFF-run football activities, effective September 17, 2026. The federation said it would act on the final conclusions of the authorities.

The ministry framed the case as part of its work under the Prime Minister's Directive No. 16/CT-TTg of May 27, 2023 on preventing and combating gambling-related crime.

Vietnam's rules on administrative gambling fines are covered in AskSpinner's report on Decree 391/2026. For another recent basketball case, see the Greek match-fixing investigation.