Nam Dinh

Early years and first league title (1965–2000)

The club was founded in 1965 as Thanh Niên Nam Hà. In 1982, the club changed their name to Công Nghiệp Hà Nam Ninh. The club made its debut in the top division during the 1982–83 season. In 1985, Công Nghiệp Hà Nam Ninh won the National A1 Championship, where the club finished the season unbeaten and their star player Nguyễn Văn Dũng ending the season as the league top scorer with 15 goals.

Following organisational changes in Vietnamese football, the club experienced several name changes and periods of restructuring during the late 1980s and 1990s.

In 1991, Công Nghiệp Hà Nam Ninh became known as Nam Hà before later adopting the name Nam Định in 1997. On 29 November 2000, the club officially adopted the name Nam Định Football Club under a provincial decision. The club continued to compete in the national league and gradually established itself as a competitive side in Vietnamese football.

Stability in the top division (2000–2008)

Nam Định finished as runners-up in the national league in the 2000–01 season. In 2001, Nam Định took second place in the National Championships, losing to Bình Định.

During this period, the club competed under several names associated with sponsorship agreements, including Sông Đà Nam Định in 2003 and Mikado Nam Định in 2006.

In 2007, under the new name Đạm Phú Mỹ Nam Định, the club won the 2007 Vietnamese Cup, after defeating Bình Định 1–0, securing one of the major honours in its history.

Relegation and returning to the top flight (2009–2021)

In 2009, Đạm Phú Mỹ Nam Định later changed it name as Megastar Nam Định. Subsequently the club reverted their name back to Mikado Nam Định in 2011. However, it struggled to maintain its position in the top division and was relegated in 2010.

In 2012, Mikado Nam Định failed to win promotion to the first division after losing on penalties to the Khánh Hòa youth team in the semi-finals. In 2013, the club reverted back to their original name Nam Định.

In 2014, Nam Định promoted to the 2015 V.League 2 after defeating Vĩnh Long 4–0 in the Second Division final at Tam Kỳ Stadium in Quảng Nam. In 2016, Nam Định finished third overall and took part in the play-off of the 2016 National First Division but failed to win promotion to the V.League.

V.League 2 champions and return to top-flight (2017–2022)

The following season, Nam Định won the 2017 V.League 2 and won the only place to play in the 2018 V.League 1.In the 2019 season, it competed as Dược Nam Hà Nam Định following a sponsorship agreement with Nam Hà Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company. The club returned to the Nam Định name the following season and continued to compete in the top division.

In 2019, the team introduced a new sponsor, Nam Hà Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company, and changed its name to Dược Nam Hà Nam Định to compete in the V.League 2019. In 2021, the team changed its name back to Nam Định Football Club after the end of the contract with Nam Ha Pharmaceutical Joint Stock Company.

However, this was still a period when financial difficulties always threaten the existence of the club. Typically, the times are continuously slow or out of the budget, even have to accept relegation because they cannot find a worthy funding. There are seasons that the team leaders have to pray for help from the fan association.

Vũ Hồng Việt reigns (2022–present)

After many poor seasons and even nearing relegation, Nam Định appointed Vũ Hồng Việt as the club head coach on 24 August 2022. Under the guidance of Vũ Hồng Việt, Nam Định has continuously been in the top 5 strongest teams in V-League.

Back-to-back league champions (2023–2025)

On 25 June 2024, Nam Định officially won the 2023–24 V.League 1 title after a 5–1 victory against Khánh Hòa in the final league match. It was the club's first top-flight league title after 39 years since their last win in 1985. Following the title, the club qualified for the inaugural 2024–25 AFC Champions League Two group stage, making their return to the intercontinental tournament since the 2008 AFC Champions League. On 18 September 2024, Nam Định played against Hong Kong club Lee Man at the Mong Kok Stadium. Rafaelson and Lucas Silva scored a goal to secured a 2–0 win over the Hong Kong club. Nam Định finished in second place in the group stage, thus seeing the team advance to the round of 16 facing against Japanese club Sanfreece Hiroshima. However, Nam Định was hammered 7–0 by the J1 League club, resulting in elimination.

Head coach Vũ Hồng Việt then helmed the club to successfully retain their league title, thus winning the 2024–25 V.League 1 title, and being granted qualification to the 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two and also the regional 2025–26 ASEAN Club Championship. In the ASEAN Club Championship, Nam Định was drawn into group B with Malaysian club Johor Darul Ta'zim, Thailand club Bangkok United, Singaporean club Lion City Sailors and Cambodian club Preah Khan Reach Svay Rieng. Nam Định began the competition with a 2–1 victory over Svay Rieng on 25 September 2025, before recording further wins against Bangkok United and Shan United. The team continued its unbeaten run with a 3–0 victory over Lion City Sailors on 29 January 2026, a result that confirmed its qualification for the semi-finals. Nam Định subsequently drew 1–1 with Johor Darul Ta'zim on 5 February, finishing top of Group B with 13 points from five matches. In the semi-finals, Nam Định faced Malaysian side Selangor over two legs in May 2026. The Vietnamese side lost the first leg 2–1 at the Petaling Jaya Stadium on 6 May. In the return leg at the Thiên Trường Stadium on 13 May, Selangor won 2–0, eliminating Nam Định with a 4–1 aggregate victory. However in the 2025–26 AFC Champions League Two, Nam Định were drawn in Group F alongside Japanese club Gamba Osaka, Thailand club Ratchaburi and Hong Kong club Eastern. The club began its campaign with a 3–1 victory over Ratchaburi on 17 September 2025, followed by a 1–0 away win against Eastern on 2 October. However, Nam Định subsequently lost 3–1 to Gamba Osaka away from home and 1–0 in the return fixture. A 2–0 defeat against Ratchaburi on 27 November further weakened the Vietnamese side's qualification hopes. On 11 December 2025, Nam Định recorded a 9–0 victory over Eastern at home in their final group-stage match. Despite the emphatic win, the result was insufficient to secure qualification for the knockout stage, and the club finished third in Group F with six points from six matches. Nam Định campaign therefore ended in the group stage, despite recording their largest victory of the season.