Myanmar football celebrities at 16th birthday party

Myamar millitary leader Gen Than Shwe’s football-loving grandson attracted the attendance of the country’s top football personalities for his 16th birthday party at Rangoon’s Sedona Hotel. "Even the newly-hired Brazilian coach of Burma’s national football side, Marcos Antonio Falopa, was there, together with members of his squad and some former top-ranking players," observed The Irrawaddy. The party in late May for Nay Shwe Thway Aung was organised by the chairman of the Myanmar Football Federation, Zaw Zaw, who is also a well-known businessman.

"Nay Shwe Thway Aung left off his usual Western party gear and turned up in a silver-colored longyi and a traditional red jacket. His favorite teams, Manchester United and Liverpool, play in red shirts, and those in the know said that he had made the color the theme of the evening," said the website.

"He’s Than Shwe’s grandson, remember, so of course no o­ne dared to confront him on the field," a Rangoon-based sports commentator told The Irrawaddy.