Fifteen years ago, if you told a Vietnamese parent their kid could make a living playing video games, they’d either laugh or unplug the computer.

Fast forward to today—those same parents are watching their kids win gold medals in esports at the SEA Games. Oh, how the tables have turned.

Vietnam is exploding onto the esports scene. Could they be the next South Korea?

Could this country of over 100 million, where nearly one in three people play esports, rise to the level of gaming juggernauts like Korea and China?

Today on You Don’t Know Vietnam, we sit down with TK Nguyen, CEO of GAM Entertainment, to answer exactly that.

And the answer? Closer than you think.

Key takeaways:

• The rise of Vietnam esports
• The ingredients of an Esport empire
• What’s holding Vietnam back?
• The future of Vietnam esports.

If you ever doubted Vietnam’s esports firepower, you weren’t at Madison Square Garden in 2022.

GAM Esports, Vietnam’s finest, went up against one of China’s elite League of Legends teams.

Defeat seemed inevitable.

And then, in a whirlwind of strategy, skill, and sheer defiance, GAM turned the tide.

The underdogs struck back, and the crowd exploded: “GAM! GAM!”

It was a battle won not just on the screen but in the hearts of millions.

And that wasn’t just an esports match. Vietnam had arrived

The four ingredients that make Vietnam Esports-ready

According to Sean Oh, Riot Games’ head of APAC, there are four key ingredients to building an esports empire.

Vietnam? It has them all.

1.The product - a nation obsessed with League of Legends

Vietnam doesn’t just play League of Legends; it devours it.

Not in a casual “I play for fun” way, but in an “I will skip family dinners to watch the finals” kind of way.

It’s the nation’s digital gladiator sport, where strategy meets lighting-fast reflexes.

With 28.2 million Vietnamese engaged in esports, this isn’t a passing trend, it’s a cultural movement.

2. The infrastructure - from cyber cafés to a national industry

Vietnam’s gaming cafés have long been breeding grounds for prodigies, but now, the industry is levelling up:

• Government recognition (SEA Games, Asian Games, and potentially the Olympics).
• Massive corporate investments from giants like VinFast, FPT, and VNG.
• Esport-focused curriculums at top universities like FPT Polytechnic.

What South Korea built in the early 2000s, Vietnam is rapidly constructing at warp speed.

3. The heroes - Vietnam’s own gaming icons

Every great esports nation needs superstars. 

If South Korea has Faker, Vietnam has Levi—the poster boy of Vietnamese esports.

Levi isn’t just mechanically gifted—he’s charismatic, sharp, and a role model for aspiring players.

And he’s not alone.

When Lazyfield became the first Vietnamese player to join Korea’s prestigious LCK, Vietnamese viewership skyrocketed overnight.

Korea took notice. The world took notice.

4. The career path - Esports is no longer “just a game”

Esports used to be the hobby that worried parents.

Now? It’s a career that pays 10 to 30 times the average Vietnamese salary.

Vietnamese players are being scouted internationally, sponsorships are rolling in, and esports teams are running like professional sports franchises.

The stigma is fading. The industry is booming.

So what’s holding Vietnam back?

Vietnam is on the brink, but there are still some roadblocks to overcome before it can dethrone South Korea as the global esports king.

🚧Education & training - Korea has a full esports ecosystem: high school leagues, academies, and structured coaching. Vietnam’s current system is more “back-alley brawler” than “Premiere League pipeline”. That needs to change.

🚧Bigger investment - Korea’s teams have millions in sponsorships. Vietnam is still in the early days of securing big-brand backing, but corporate interest is growing fast.

🚧Shifting perception - Esports is gaining legitimacy, but some parents still see gaming was “wasting time”. The industry needs to educate families on the vast career opportunities beyond just playing. It’s also about coaching, analysis, marketing, event management, and more.

Is Vietnam ready to take the crown?

So, back to the question: Is Vietnam becoming the next South Korea of esports?

Maybe. Maybe not. 

Maybe, it’s something entirely different; something newer, rawer, uniquely Vietnamese.

Vietnam has never followed the blueprint. It rewrites it.

And this time, it’s writing the future of esports.

Want to find out how to build a consistent social media presence through compelling content? Contact us at [email protected]