Manchester United are back in the spotlight — but this time, it’s not about football. Captain Bruno Fernandes has set the internet ablaze after posting a mysterious video to his personal account, showing him holding up a passport bearing the name of a country that… doesn’t exist.
In the less than 15-second clip, Bruno looks straight into the camera, flashes a half-smile, and holds up a dark blue passport — the cover of which reads “Republic of Norvania” in gold. There’s no caption, no explanation, just a single hourglass icon in the caption: “⏳”.
Within minutes, the clip had gone viral, racking up more than 20 million views and nearly 3 million comments. From there, a storm of speculation erupted across social media:
“What is Norvania? A secret country?” one fan wrote.
“Is this a clue to Bruno’s secret project? Or is he starring in a movie?” others speculated.
“Fake passport? Hidden message? Or is Bruno hinting at leaving Man United?” – a series of comments appeared under the post.
Some fans believe this is a promotional campaign for a travel brand or video game, while others think it is an elaborate “riddle” from Bruno – who is known for teasing the media.
However, what makes the story even more strange is that the passport in the video looks extremely real – with a code, stamp and even a signature. Some “internet detectives” zoomed in and discovered a faint seal in the shape of a phoenix, along with the small words “The journey begins soon”.
The Mirror Football called it “the most bizarre mystery a Premier League player has ever created”, while the Daily Express headlined: “Bruno Fernandes and the passport from nowhere: Marketing stunt or sign of departure?”
A source “close” to the player whispered:
“Bruno always has his own projects off the pitch. This time it could be an international project with a film production company or a global sports brand. But he likes to keep people guessing.”
Even more interesting, many fans discovered that in the clip, Bruno is standing in front of a blurry background with a world map behind him — but there is a highlighted area… right where there is no official map.
Netizens quickly recreated the image, theorizing that “Norvania” is a fictional country in the middle of the Atlantic, or even a surreal project in the metaverse that Bruno is part of.
Bruno’s Twitter account has remained completely silent since then. No corrections, no responses — leaving only one line in its bio:
“No nation, no limits.”
The story continues to trend globally, with a series of unanswered questions. Is this the start of a high-profile promotional campaign, a personal allusion — or just an elaborate prank by the Man United captain?
Until Bruno spoke up, the world was still watching his every move — and the passport from the “fake country” has officially become the symbol of the hottest mystery in the football world this week.
