After a two-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival officially returned with the participation of 16 water buffaloes from six wards.
Sixteen water buffaloes will participate in 15 matches to choose the champion. According to the Buffalo Fighting Festival Organizing Committee, the buffaloes are well taken care of by the owners to be ready for fierce battles.
The Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival has been restored since 1990 and is held annually on the ninth day of the eighth month in the lunar calendar. The festival was included in the List of National Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism under Decision No.5079/QD-BVHTTDL, dated December 27, 2012.
In 2022, Do Son District People's Committee continues to organize the traditional buffalo fighting festival, after halting for two years, to continue preserving, promoting, and affirming the traditional cultural values of the festival, creating a highlight for the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the recognition of the Do Son Buffalo Fighting Festival as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Because the stadium has a capacity of about 20,000 seats, the Organizing Committee will control the number of visitors and people entering the stadium to watch the buffalo fight by invitation.
Those who do not have an invitation will watch buffalo fights via live television at two locations that have been arranged with large screens, near the arena. The Buffalo Fighting Festival Organizing Committee arranges about 400 people from the forces of police, army, and border guard to ensure security inside and outside the arena. The police wear plain clothes to patrol to prevent and handle cases of organizing and participating in gambling.
