Con can keep a shuttlecock up in the air for a long time. He juggles with it and holds it still on his knees and toes. It mustn’t touch the ground and you can’t use your hands.

‘Da cau’, or foot badminton, is Vietnam’s national sport. Almost all the children at Duc Son pagoda play da cau. They often stand in a ring and kick the shuttlecock between them. The shuttlecock is similar to the one used for badminton, but it has more weight at the tip so it always falls downwards.

Sometimes the children form two groups either side of a line and compete with one another, but when professionals play they use a proper badminton court.

Con says that when the children at the pagoda play football, it’s serious. Da cau is more of a game. They cheer one another on when someone does a good kick, or laugh when someone misses or trips up trying to get to the shuttlecock.

Text: Erik Halkjaer
Photo: Jesper Klemedsson