The 2023 V.League 2, known as the Gold Star V.League 2 (Vietnamese: Giải bóng đá Hạng Nhất Quốc gia Bia Sao Vàng 2023) for sponsorship reasons, will be the 29th season of V. League 2, Vietnam's second tier professional football league. The season is scheduled to commence on 6 April 2023.[1]
On February 14, 2023, both Saigon and Can Tho announced they would not attend 2023 V.League 2 due to financial reasons. Saigon sold their spot in the league to Lam Dong before subsequently dissolving. However, Saigon said that their facilities and professional work have not met the conditions, not guaranteeing long-term progress so Saigon have been dissolved while Lam Dong still play in the Vietnamese Football League Second Division. Meanwhile, Can Tho will play in the Vietnamese Football League Third Division from the 2023–24 season.[2]
Competition format
Initially, the Organizing Committee decided that the tournament would apply the format of season 2021 but with a few changes:
Stage 1: Consists of 11 rounds of single round-robin, this result will divide 11 teams into 2 groups: the top 5 teams will enter group A, the remaining 6 teams will enter group B. The scores of the teams will remain the same when entering group stage 2.
Stage 2:
Group A (Competition for the Championship): Consists of 5 teams, ranked from 1 to 5. Teams compete in another single round robin. Each team will play 2 home matches and 2 away matches. The winning team will compete in 2023–24 V.League 1.
Group B (Relegation Race): Consists of 6 teams, with ranking positions from 6 to 11. Teams compete in another single round robin. The teams ranked 6-8 in the first stage play 3 home matches, the remaining 3 teams play 2 home matches. The 11th-placed team will be relegated to the 2023–24 Vietnamese League Two.
However, with Saigon dropping out of the tournament, on March 3, VPF discussed and came to a decision to return to the double round-robin format with 18 rounds when the tournament had 10 teams left. The winning team will compete in 2023–24 V.League 1. The 10th-placed team will play a play-off against a team from the 2023 Vietnamese League Two to determine the team that will compete in the 2023–24 Vietnamese League Two.
Source: VPF Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Head-to-head points; 3) Head-to-head goal difference; 4) Head-to-head goals scored (criterias from 2 to 4 are only applied at the end of the season); 5) Goal difference; 6) Goals scored. (C) Champions; (Q) Qualified for the phase indicated
