It was a high-achieving season for Vietnam’s National Team of Men’s Volleyball in 2026, with a lot of revolutions and records. However, the changes that we should be proud of have a deeper root than just glitz and glamour; real revolutions arrived in technique, professionalism, and ethos of a whole Vietnamese volleyball generation.
Federico Rampazzo (52) has started coaching Team Vietnam since May 2026, with his Italian-Taiwanese expertise, fresh energy, and novelty, helping Vietnam gain its first male Southeast Asian gold medal ever in history, with a simple principle that “matches are not to win, but to improve in every aspect”.
“Do you want an egg right now, or do you want a chicken tomorrow? My choice is… neither,” Coach Rampazzo shared. “I try to create a path that yields immediate results while best preparing for the future. If you rely solely on tactics for short-term wins while ignoring technical upgrades, you will quickly hit a glass ceiling. Therefore, the path I choose is a harmony of both: refining technique while mastering tactics.”
Rampazzo introduced a self-funded shooting ball machine to enhance reception and defense, alongside updated block posture and timing. He heightened the pace for setting and attacks from all positions, especially the speed-demanding middle blocker. Furthermore, he established a new mindset and standards for the opposite hitter — refining Vietnam’s weak point, where we lack a “killer” opposite hitter to cover the right side of the court on his own, through arm-extension technique and preparation run for attack.
Beyond tactics, he introduced new applications of rehabilitation and nutrition — areas alarmingly neglected in Vietnamese sport due to lack of expertise and investment. While being head coach, he directly took care of players during individual rehab and psychotherapy sessions, and advised them on diet and schedules, to ensure their biological clock naturally adapts to competition. He instituted psychological principles like “no blaming”, “no problem”, and “it’s a long match” to eliminate mental barriers that previously caused Vietnamese players to get reversed in Set 3.
Even external factors like social media were not left out. Rampazzo forbids players from reading online comments after matches while educating netizens to behave more responsibly. “I truly hope the people of Vietnam will put their hands on their hearts and support these individuals,” he emphasised. “Cheering when the team wins is all too easy, but when times are tough, pointing fingers in criticism is not true support. Please help us, because these young players can bring immense pride to Vietnam — they will only get better with fans standing behind them.”
The year delivered valuable lessons.
Vietnam has had milestone victories against the traditional rival — Thailand and regional No.1 — Indonesia, whose roster won the Asian-scale AVC club championship, proving that a team with zero player playing abroad can stand tall as regional empires. After that, matches against Qatar and India exposed physical gaps against two-meter-tall players, as Truong The Khai was the only two-meter for Vietnam. While showing real skill improvements, results highlighted the need for a nationwide nutrition and training plan. However, a revelatory moment against highly technical Chinese Taipei revealed that physical gap is not the only issue. Despite better performances, Vietnam still has lacking precision in skills against an underrated rival.
National setter Dinh Van Duy reflected: “The national team season this year was very special, as we had special practices with special equipment, and achieved special goals: winning against Indonesia after 11 years, and winning a final against Thailand, finally.” Bearing pressure as the country’s best setter in his 4th year, Dinh was finally able to let go of tension and be proud.
Looking ahead to SEA GAMES 2027 in Malaysia, we have a bright and exciting outlook with our main goal set on defending gold, driven by curiosity for how the team with the Italian head coach will navigate future challenges.
Mackenzie Nguyen
- This is English News Report’s assignment — Your First News Story, under Global Business Journalism programme, School of Journalism and Communication, Tsinghua University, China.
- Emdash — is my personal choice, not AI.
- Photos from Webthethao.vn Facebook fanpage. I am only using these photos for educational purpose.
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