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In yet another effort to develop our young aspiring footballers into future stars, Nike Malaysia and Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) has just kicked off this year’s edition of Manchester United Premier Cup (MUPC). For those who are not familiar with MUPC, it is currently the largest Under-15 football tournament in the world and since its inception in 1993, it has become the proving ground for some of the world’s biggest football superstars such as Fernando Torres, Carlos Tevez, Cesc Fabregas and many more.
The Malaysian leg of the tournament is not lacking in stars too as some of our current crop of national footballers such as Aidil Zafuan and Zaquan Adha Abdul Radzak, together with Khyril Muhymeen have also honed their skills at the annual tournament.
Just like the Nike Elite Training sessions and other programs before it, the MUPC serves as a platform to discover promising young players that can be further developed to compete at a higher level. As one of the many on-going efforts by Nike Malaysia and FAM to develop local grassroots football, MUPC also aims to give these young kids a chance to hone theirs skills in a highly competitive environment together with an opportunity to proceed to international arena at a very young age.
Story continues after the jump.

So far, four teams – MSS Kedah, SMK Pulau Nyior, Victoria Institution and SMK Kajang - have made it through to the national finals by becoming the top teams at their respective zones. Four more teams will be selected from the upcoming Johor and Kuantan qualifying zones before the finale on 22nd May in Kuala Lumpur. The overall champion of the tournament will represent Malaysia at MUPC Regional Finals; scheduled to take place at Si Racha, Thailand this coming June.
Furthermore, if everything goes well during the regionals, our boys will then receive the chance of a lifetime to prove their worth against other MUPC regional champions from all over the world at the MUPC World Finals, Manchester in August 2010. It is a long and harsh road indeed but really, there is nothing that we Malaysians cannot do, right?
We would like to wish all the best to the remaining participating teams and we hope to see you guys, not only at the national finals and regional finals, but also in the World Finals at Manchester. For more information about the tournament, check out MUPC's official website at www.manchesterunitedpremiercup.com.