“It was a valiant effort,” said Team Vietnam manager Hoang Xuan Hong. “We took a football powerhouse to the brink and showed the world we can play the game with the best of them. It was an experience none of us will ever forget.”

The Bud Cup was a six-on-six, Budweiser-beer-sponsored, grassroots football tournament that gave recreational players the opportunity to live out their dreams by taking part in an international competition at the Theater of Dreams.

The Bud Cup began in Vietnam on March 25, with qualifying rounds in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Hanoi’s Team Horison beat the 63 other squads in the 6v6 national championship to advance to Manchester and become the first Vietnamese players to set foot on MU’s home turf.

Reported by Huu Tho