Vietnam goalkeeper to present award at World Cup semi-final

Dung has been invited to the semi-final in Luzhniki Stadium as a guest and brand representative of a sponsor of the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Dung will present the award after the match, which will start at 9 p.m. on Wednesday Moscow time, which is 1 a.m. on Thursday in Hanoi.

The “Man of the match” award for each match at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia is determined by votes from football fan around the world. Voting is open online on several platforms including FIFA.com.

No official expert’s evaluation is involved in deciding the award, and it is thus not highly regarded in the professional sense. Sponsors, however, see great promoting opportunities via this award, since it is often associated with their brand name.

Dung, currently the goalkeeper for FLC Thanh Hoa Football Club in Vietnam, gained national recognition as a resilient custodian of the Vietnam U23 football team that reached the final of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U23 Championship in January 2018.

The goalkeeper is expected to return the next day to continue practicing and competing in Vietnam Football League (V-League).