Ultimate prize: Vuong Hong Nhat puts the final touches to a new replica. — VNS Photo Le Huong

World Cup spirit is taking over the planet, and the event is being talked about in cafes and homes around the globe.

Potters in Bat Trang Village on the outskirts of the capital are taking advantage of this by developing new products to celebrate the festive atmosphere.

Some workshops in the village are producing World Cup replicas, and Vuong Hong Nhat's workshop is among the busiest, with dozens of wholesalers waiting for their orders to be completed.

Nhat said his family had been working from early morning till 11pm to meet the increasing demand. Everyday, the workshop produces up to 50 cups, but always displays a "sold out" sign.

"We are happy because the World Cup gives us a chance to make more money," Nhat said, while pouring plaster into a plastic mould which was made for the 2010 World Cup.

"To make a mould like this would take a week while the increasing demand has not permitted us to stop to make new moulds. That's why we have to manage with only one old mould."

Nhat said the cups are made from 1kg of plaster powder and half a litre of water, and then sprayed with gold paint.

"Earlier this year, FIFA brought the World Cup to Viet Nam, but it was displayed in a glass cabinet and we couldn't get close to it," said student Nguyen Huu Hung, "That's why people want to buy one of their own, even though they are made in Bat Trang."

Various workshops in the village have also been offering plaster paintings of top players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

"I'm surprised that some children even ask for international players that we don't have on our list," said Vu Nguyet Thu, a workshop owner in the village.

I can see there aren't any Vietnamese footballers on display, which might make them think twice about the way they conduct themselves," commented Le Thu Ha, a parent looking for a gift for her child. — VNS