The Con Dao Football Memory: More Than a Match

Early morning on Con Dao island, when the mist still covered the old execution ground, a special friendly football match took place between the veterans' team and the doctors and nurses of Long Chau Pharmacy. The match had no stands, but it was witnessed by hundreds of local residents, and one detail went unnoticed: among the veterans' lineup, there was a 60-year-old man who ran as if he had never left football for a day. He was Uncle Nam, a veteran who had participated in the historic football match between the North and South in 2026. He recalled that today's match was dedicated to his fallen comrades and marked Long Chau's journey to this land. The community program, organized by Long Chau Pharmacy in coordination with the People's Army Newspaper, brought doctors, nurses, thousands of medicine packages, and medical equipment from the mainland to provide health check-ups for the island's residents, along with sports and cultural exchange activities. Colonel Le Van Hung, a representative of the People's Army Newspaper, emphasized that this initiative was part of the events leading to the National Day on September 2nd, embodying the tradition of 'remembering the source when drinking water' and showing gratitude for the sacrifices of previous generations. This was the first time a football match was held at Hang Duong Cemetery, the resting place of thousands of soldiers. On the grass still wet with night dew, the aging players ran slowly, but their passes carried deep symbolic meaning. In fact, what mattered was not the score. According to the organizers, the program was implemented under Resolution 72-NQ/TW of the Politburo on strengthening the protection, care, and improvement of people's health in the new situation. Long Chau mobilized hundreds of medical staff, along with 2,700 pharmacies and 230 vaccination centers nationwide, bringing high-quality medical services to people on remote islands. But amidst the medical activities, the matches were the strongest emotional connectors. Mr. Hoang Trung Kien, General Director of FPT Retail, shared that the match was a way for the company's young employees to better understand history and love the S-shaped land more. For him, watching Uncle Nam score a goal on this sacred land was more valuable than any marketing campaign. But this match also revealed a truth: for many years, we have considered football mere entertainment, but on Con Dao, football is a bridge between past and present. Uncle Nam recalled that his 2026 match had no referee, no rules, all they had was a self-made ball and a longing for peace. In a world where people watch football through LED screens with complex statistical data, the matches on Con Dao remind us that the value of this sport lies not in the score, but in the moments that bring people closer together. The next morning, when the medical team was about to return to the mainland, Uncle Nam still stood at the wharf, holding a new ball tightly. On it were the signatures of the players and a line: 'Con Dao – where football is peace'. The sound of the ball hitting the ground is the ultimate sound of truth. During the days on Con Dao, I heard that sound again, not on professional pitches, but from the bare feet of children on red dirt roads. That was the moment I understood that there are goals not born of tactics, but of the air itself. Every run is an unfinished poem, waiting for someone else to complete it. And on Con Dao, those poems were completed by people who will never appear in the U23 Asian rankings, but perhaps they are the true guardians of football's authentic beauty. The memory of this match will accompany me throughout my career. Not because it was spectacular, but because it contained the full depth of love for the ball: a match that changed the atmosphere of an island, and of myself.