Vietnamese electric vehicle manufacturer VinFast is facing intense public backlash after posting—and swiftly deleting—a controversial image depicting a Thai elephant bowing to a Vietnamese dragon following a national soccer victory.
The Latest: On the evening of Aug. 26, following a victory by Việt Nam’s national soccer team over Thailand, VinFast published a controversial post on its Facebook page.
- The post declared, “The Vietnamese dragon soars, carrying national pride to the top of Southeast Asia.”
- The company removed the post within hours after it quickly attracted widespread attention and backlash from Facebook users.
- It remains unclear why the company took down the post.
The Controversial Graphic: The accompanying image depicted an elephant, which is a recognized symbol of Thailand, bowing in submission.
- The image also featured five VinFast electric vehicles positioned in the lower-left corner, alongside the elephant and the dragon.
From Social Media: The image became a subject of intense discussion on the social media platform Threads.
- By the afternoon of Aug. 27, “VinFast removes AI image of kneeling elephant” was the platform’s fourth-highest trending topic.
User star** wrote: “Vin folks, Việt Nam won one soccer match. Was it really necessary to create an image of them—the elephant, Thailand’s symbol—kneeling at our feet? After last night’s street celebrations, besides roads covered in trash, what do we have to compare with them? If you’re clever enough to exploit patriotism for marketing like this, tell me what you eat so I can make an offering to you.”
- By 3 p.m. on Aug. 27, that specific post had received more than 5,500 interactions before it was also removed.
User r.o.s.*** wrote: “Personally, I don’t like this kind of manipulated image. ‘Do not become arrogant in victory or discouraged in defeat’ is what our elders taught later generations.”
Furthermore, User viet*** asked, “Why does being proud require insulting someone else?”
Attempts to Contact: Luật Khoa contacted VinFast on the afternoon of Aug. 27 seeking more information.
- Kim, a customer service representative for VinFast in the United States, said, “This issue is an internal matter and cannot be discussed by phone because it involves several different departments.”
- Luật Khoa subsequently emailed VinFast’s Communications Department, but the department could not deliver the message because “the recipient’s mailbox is full and cannot accept messages.”
- Finally, Luật Khoa also called and emailed the person responsible for Vingroup’s External Communications Department but received no response.
Hoàng Nam wrote this news article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on August 28, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine translated it into English.
