It also raises a question: Is it normal to organize professional tournaments professionally, but is it necessary or wasteful to organize an amateur tournament that always acts like professional football, because simply, grassroots sports are not organized to make money?
This question has long been debated in the sports world, because many aspects of professional organization are related to formality, from the field, the cleanliness of the stands, to… the opening ceremony.
The opening ceremony was more elaborate than expected.
More than 1,000 people participated in the performance, including 600 students from the People's Police Academy, 500 professional dancers and singers, and the support of hundreds of children from the SHB FC Academy Youth Football Training Center. The event was equipped with a modern mobile stage system, unique lighting effects, brilliant fireworks and advanced technology.
The opening ceremony of the 2025 ASEAN Police Football Tournament was truly a continuous artistic performance with complex layers: Opening with a drum performance combining lion - unicorn - dragon with the theme "Aspiration to shine", followed by a mashup performance of traditional - modern, multilingual music by many artists. Then, when the audience was still overwhelmed, the scene changed to a drone flying in the air carrying LED flags of the participating countries. The moment the championship trophy was introduced under 360-degree laser light showed that it is something to be desired and cherished.
It is rare to see such an elaborate and emotional opening ceremony in a tournament that is not for professionals.
The definition of professionalism, in the simplest sense, is that it can be used to make money. Professional football is something that must support itself, so its “product” must be meticulous from form (field factors, service, medical care, etc.) to content (matches), of course. But what about grassroots tournaments, which cannot make money, but rather contribute to the socialization of sports?
Mr. Hien and his subsidiaries such as SHB Bank and T&T Group have professionalized the organization of the grassroots tournaments they sponsor and accompany, including the recent grand opening ceremony.
Fans who have watched many tournaments from 7-11 players, from small scale to international level, bearing Mr. Hien's mark must probably wonder: What is the basis for this effort to professionalize the organization?
Professionalize the amateur playground
It can be explained simply as… because of liking it, until it becomes a habit. Right from the beginning of his involvement in grassroots activities, Mr. Hien has created a strict standard in line with what he has been doing with professional football. Amateur and semi-professional players may not make a living directly from football, but they will enter the tournaments that Mr. Hien is involved in and feel like they are playing the role of real professional players.
Back to the question at the beginning of this article: Is that too wasteful, because in fact, grassroots football is to raise the flag high, not to make money.
The sports world used to debate a lot, until a study by Victoria University, New Zealand from 13 years ago concluded that, it turns out that when professional elements are applied to amateur sports (e.g. Medical care, match analysis, coach development, talent discovery...), the quality and efficiency of the sports system increases significantly.
Another prime example in football of the miracle created by the professionalization of amateur leagues is the Japanese school football system.
They began to focus on developing school sports and youth football training from the 1960s, especially after hosting the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, which created a great impetus for the strong development of sports nationwide. From there, a football training system and school and student tournaments were organized systematically, professionally, and competitively like the highest level of Japan's league gradually formed over the next nearly three decades.
The result: After only three decades, they qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 1998. Japanese sports scientists have summarized this success in a term: Ecological Dynamics: The professionally organized school football environment creates appropriate challenges and diverse situations that help athletes develop flexible skills, tactical thinking and quick decision-making ability. Although playing football for children is not a profession, the serious, professional atmosphere creates the attitude and spirit of competition later on.
If anyone has watched a training session of SHB FC, they will surely feel the seriousness and professionalism similar to… Hanoi FC. And this consistency is not only present internally, but also spreads to any tournament that bears the mark of Mr. Hien and his organizations.
You can expect a lot from the quality of tournaments organized like this, because the opening ceremony itself sometimes breathes life into the players' competitive spirit: They know that even though they are not coming here as professional players, the standards of this tournament are the highest and they will have to fight their hardest.
In sports, being dedicated and immersed in your performance is the secret to producing quality matches at the pinnacle of the two sacred words: Professionalism.
Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/le-khai-mac-va-tieu-chuan-dinh-cao-cua-bau-hien-709036.html
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