116th IFA Shield: Starts tomorrow, Brazilian side taking part

The 116th edition of the IFA Shield will be played from March 3 to 16 in Kolkata. Rose Valley will be the title sponsor with NewsTime Bangla set to show the tournament live which will be inaugurated by the West Bengal Sports Minister Madan Mitra tomorrow.

But the tournament will have to do without local giants Mohun Bagan AC (as reported IFA Shield 2012: Mohun Bagan might skip the tournament), who have opted out of the tournament; but the star attraction of this edition will be a reserve side from Brazilians Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas from Rio de Janeiro.

The champions would receive a record Rs 2 Million (20 lakh) with the runners-up receiving Rs 1,5 Million (15 lakhs), while the two semifinalists would both get Rs 500,000. The best player of the tournament would get Rs 25,000 and the Sailen Manna Trophy, while the best coach would get Rs. 50,000 and the Sir Rahim Trophy.

The IFA Shield preliminary round will see 12 teams divided into four groups of three teams each. Group A contains East Bengal Club, Shillong Lajong FC and Bhowanipore Club; Group B will see Botafogo BFR (BRAZIL), Chirag United Kerala and Southern Samity in action; Group C is made-up of Pune FC, Pailan Arrows and Ar-Hima FC; while Group D has Prayag United SC, Mumbai FC and Techno Aryan Club.


GROUPS & FIXTURES

Group A
East Bengal Club, Shillong Lajong FC, Bhowanipore Club

03-Mar-2012: East Bengal Club - Bhowanipore Club (Saltlake Stadium; 15.00 IST)
05-Mar-2012: Shillong Lajong FC - Bhowanipore Club (East Bengal Ground, Maidan; 15.00 IST)
09-Mar-2012: East Bengal Club - Shillong Lajong FC (Saltlake Stadium; 15.00 IST)

Group B
Botafogo BFR (BRAZIL), Chirag United Kerala, Southern Samity

04-Mar-2012: Chirag United Kerala - Southern Samity (Howrah Maidan; 15.00 IST)
09-Mar-2012: Botafogo BFR - Chirag United Kerala (Howrah Maidan; 15.00 IST)
11-Mar-2012: Botafogo BFR - Southern Samity (Saltlake Stadium; 15.00 IST)

Group C
Pune FC, Pailan Arrows, Ar-Hima FC

04-Mar-2012: Pune FC - Pailan Arrows (East Bengal Ground, Maidan; 15.00 IST)
06-Mar-2012: Pune FC - Ar-Hima FC (Howrah Maidan; 15.00 IST)
10-Mar-2012: Ar-Hima FC - Pailan Arrows (Howrah Maidan; 15.00 IST)

Group D
Prayag United SC, Mumbai FC, Techno Aryan Club

05-Mar-2012: Mumbai FC - Techno Aryan Club (Howrah Maidan; 15.00 IST)
07-Mar-2012: Prayag United SC - Mumbai FC (Saltlake Stadium; 15.00 IST)
10-Mar-2012: Prayag United SC - Techno Aryan Club (Saltlake Stadium; 15.00 IST)

Semifinals
12-Mar-2012: Winner Group A - Winner Group C (Saltlake Stadium, 14.30 IST)
13-Mar-2012: Winner Group B - Winner Group D (Saltlake Stadium, 14.30 IST)

Final
16-Mar-2012: Winner SF 1 - Winner SF 2 (Saltlake Stadium, 14.30 IST)