Amsel Ignác

15.04.28:  Amsel Ignác, The Spider,  puts the ball over his crossbar during Ferencváros' 5-1 win over Kispest.

 

Between 1921 and 1931 Amsel represented Hungary 9 times, but was only on the winning side once. On a positive note he became the first Hungarian goalkeeper to save a penalty in internationals (v Austria, 1923).

Manchester United in Budapest

A flyer advertising Manchester United's visit to Budapest in 1908.

Manchester United in Central Europe 1908

United and Ferencváros

Having won the League Championship for the first time in the 1907-08 season, Manchester United, under the leadership of Ernest Mangnall, embarked on their first overseas tour.

06.05.08	Zurich Select	2*	4	Manchester United	Zurich
11.05.08**	Slavia	0	2	Manchester United	Prague
12.05.08***	Slavia	0	2	Manchester United	Prague
13.05.08	WSC	0	4	Manchester United	Vienna
15.05.08	WAC	0	5	Manchester United	Vienna
17.05.08	Vienna Select	0	4	Manchester United	Vienna
22.05.08	Budapest Select ****	2	6	Manchester United	Budapest
24.05.08	Ferencváros	0	7	Manchester United	Budapest

* 1 in some sources

** In some sources 09.05.08

*** in some sources 10.05.08

**** teams represented were MTC, Ferencváros & BTC

I can only find a full team listing for the game with WAC-Moger, Stacey, Burgess, Duckworth , Thompson, Downie, Meredith, Bannister,Turnbull, Picken, Wall- a strong United XI.
As Mr Mangnall commented on his return to England that United would never play Slavia again I can only assume that there was some controversy attached to the games in Prague- the English press reports contain nothing that enlightens us on this matter. 
In Vienna, the press commented, the referee ran along the touchline 'in a tremendous state of excitement...some of the attitudes he struck were simply magnificent'. The United players in this match were also surprised by the presence of some Oldham Athletic supporters- expats living in Vienna who attended despite the 1s 8d admission price. 
The game that attracted the most attention was the clash with Ferencváros.  The game ended with United being escorted from the ground by armed mounted police having being pelted with stones by the spectators (there were 16,000 present). Thompson received a superficial injury. 

Refereeing was the issue, as was often the case with overseas games in this era. The rules on the continent tended to be interpreted differently- physical contact, a staple of the English game, was frowned upon. 
Firstly it would appear that there were 'goal judges' deployed at the posts who actually interfered with the play in some way. 
There was controversy over a penalty awarded to United-  a United forward 'cleverly rolled into the penalty area' after being fouled, According to Hungarian sources the referee was aware of the deceit but was placed under pressure by the Manchester United players. Goalkeeper Moger scored the penalty to complete the 7-0 scoreline.
There is also some suggestion that the referee wished to dismiss 3 United players for overly physical play. Ferencváros lost 2 players to injury. Communication broke down and when one of the United men (Thompson) placed a hand on the referees shoulder the crowd became incensed.
Some reports held that there were no hard feelings after the game and that the 2 sides dined together, a suggestion dismissed by Mr Mangnall.

Manchester Courier

Incidentally, in the Ferencváros game 2 of the great players of the era shared a pitch for the only time. Billy Meredith and Imre Schlosser made 116 international appearances between them in careers that totalled 48 years.

Mitropa Cup

Hugo Meisl's visionary idea that international club competitions would be both lucrative and a means of strengthening the standard of central European football were instrumental in elevating the Austrian, Hungarian and Czech game. The Danubian clubs were at the time equal to any in the World. The Mitropa Cup also provided the template for later international club competitions.
Let's look at the first 10 tournament winners and 9 finals:

1927 Sparta Prague

30.10.27	Sparta	6	2	Rapid	Letna, Prague:  25,000
13.11.27	Rapid	2	1	Sparta	Hohe Warte, Vienna: 40,000
Sparta		7	4	Rapid

Káďa

Dual international (football and ice hockey) Karel Pešek-Káďa was the first captain to lift the trophy. He also put Sparta ahead in the first minute of their emphatic victory in the home leg of the final. 

1928 Ferencváros

28.10.28	Ferencváros	7	1	Rapid	Üllői úti ,Budapest:  25,000
11.11.28	Rapid	5	3	Ferencváros	Hohe Warte, Vienna: 20,000
Ferencvaros		10	6	Rapid

Takács

8 goals in each leg! József Takács, the tournament top scorer (10 goals) scored a hat trick in the first leg. 

1929 Újpesti FC

03.11.29	Újpest	5	1	Slavia	Hungária körút,Budapest:  18,000
17.11.29	Slavia	2	2	Újpest	Letna, Prague:  25,000
Újpest		7	3	Slavia

 Auer/Avar

Tournament top scorer was Újpest's Stefan Auer (aka Istavan Avar). He scored in both legs of the final.


1930 Rapid (Vienna)

02.11.30	Sparta	0	2	Rapid	Letna, Prague:  25,000
11.11.30	Rapid	2	3	Sparta	Hohe Warte, Vienna : 40,000
Rapid		4	3	Sparta

A 2nd leg hattrick by Josef  Košťálek was not enough for Sparta.

1931 First Vienna FC

08.11.31	WAC	2	3	First Vienna	Hardturm , Zürich: 20,000
13.11.31	First Vienna	2	1	WAC	Hohe Warte, Vienna : 25,000
First Vienna		5	3	WAC

1932 Bologna

Italian clubs had been participating since 1929 and Bologna were the first Italian winners. There was no final, however. Bologna won their semi final against First Vienna. The second leg of the other semi final, Juventus versus Slavia at Stadio di Corso Marsiglia, was abandoned. Juventus pulled back 2 goals having lost the away leg 4-0. Slavia then engaged time wasting tactics that enraged the crowd. Stones were thrown, Plánička was injured, Slavia walked off, both sides were ejected from the competition.


1933 Austria (Vienna)

03.09.33	Ambrosiana	2	1	Austria	Arena Civica , Milan : 25,000
08.09.33	Austria	3	1	Ambrosiana	Praterstadion, Vienna : 58,000
Austria		4	3	Ambrosiana

Sindelar

Matthias Sindelar scored a hat trick in the second leg to win the trophy for Austria.

Two legends: Sindelar and Meazza

1934 Bologna

05.09.34	Admira	3	2	Bologna	Praterstadion, Vienna : 50,000
09.09.34	Bologna	5	1	Admira	Littoriale, Bologna: 25,000
Bologna		7	4	Admira

Reguzzoni

Carlo Reguzzoni scored a hat trick in Bologna's emphatic home win. He was also the competition's top scorer, with 10 goals. 

1935 Sparta Prague

08.09.35	Ferencvaros	2	1	Sparta	Ulloi Ut, Budapest: 34,000
15.09.35	Sparta	3	0	Ferencvaros	Velký Strahovský Stadion: 56, 000
Sparta		4	2	Ferencvaros

Braine 

Belgium's Ray Braine scored 3 goals in the finals

1936 Austria (Vienna)

06.09.36	Austria	0	0	Sparta	Praterstadion, Vienna : 41,600
13.09.36	Sparta	0	1	Austria	Velký Strahovský Stadion: 58,000
Austria		1	0	Sparta

 Jerusalem

  Low scoring games were a rarity. 0-0 draws almost unheard of. During these 10 seasons Mitropa Cup ties produced an average of 4.2 goals per game. 
Camillo Jerusalem broke the deadlock in the 67th minute of the 2nd leg. 

 Winners by country: 
Austria - 4 

Hungary -2

Czechoslovakia -2

Italy - 2

Yugoslavia - 0

Switzerland - 0