VIDEO: Delhi Girl Power - School Championship (Highlights)

Anglian Football recently organized the Delhi Girl Power School Championship for girls' football in Jasola Sports Complex. Each match was of a 20 minute duration with six players on each side. It was covered by FIFA Futbol Mundial producer Oliver Greenleaves and his crew. The championship was finally won by the Modern School Barakhamba girls' team!

VIDEO: Trailer of Anglian Football's Vekho Mundeyon

Here is the video trailer to Anglian Football's latest project Vekho Mundeyon also titled as Queen of Football!

At Anglian Football, they are always looking for ways to make Indian football more exciting. While interest in Men's football is picking-up, Women's football in India is completely overlooked, even though the Women's team is performing well. As part of Anglians initiatives to popularise Women's football in India, they just wrapped up a Punjabi rap music video - here is a small teaser from the video - watch out for the launch of the full video very soon!

Blackburn's Edinho joins Shillong Lajong FC on loan

I-League side Shillong Lajong FC have taken Brazilian born, Portuguese footballer Edon Júnior Viegas do Amaral (popularly known as Edinho Júnior) on loan from the English Championship side Blackburn Rovers FC and he will be donning the red of Shillong Lajong.

Edinho will be joining the Shillong-based club on a short-term loan beginning February 16, 2013. He is a Portuguese national of Brazilian origin who moved to Blackburn Rovers from Olhanense SC. The talented 18 year old plays centre-forward and is the son of a former Brazilian international footballer, Edon do Amaral Neto.

Lajong hope the signing of Edinho will add impetus to their campaign for the remainder of the 2012/13 season. It will add an edge to the club's striking options.

Lajong's story and place in Indian football is truly historic. It became the first club from North-East India to have qualified for the I-League, India’s premier football league.

Shillong Lajong FC had been the first-ever Indian football club to have had a strategic stake taken by Anglian Holdings. The Meghalaya-based club boasts of an impressive youth system as well. With an eye to aid in the development of Indian football, Anglian Holdings has also invested in Danish second tier club FC
Vestsjaelland to provide a platform for fledgling Indian football talent to ply their trade in Europe.

Much in the same vein, India-based VH Group, took charge at then English Premier League club Blackburn Rovers, now in the Championship, to announce the arrival of the Indian football story on the world stage. The loan move for Edinho signals a consolidated effort to provide a powerful push for the sport in India.

Commenting on this development Balaji Rao, Managing Director of Venky's, says, "We are pleased to be associated with Shillong Lajong FC through the loan of young Edinho. We look forward to opportunities to help develop our players and football in India through strategic partnerships."

Larsing Ming Sawyan, General Secretary Shillong Lajong FC, added, "We are thankful to Blackburn Rovers for providing us with a player of Edinho's quality. He will be an incisive edge to Lajong's forward line and will definitely add to the quality of the game on the field."

Dhruv Ratra, CEO-Sports & Marketing Anglian Holdings, summarized the deal by saying, "This exchange of talent – a first of its kind in Indian football – will set a precedent for future exchanges of knowledge and information which in turn will help drive the game of football forward in India. Edinho is an exciting young player and Indian fans will enjoy his exploits on the field."

VIDEO: 1st DSA Inter School Girls Football Tournament

In their latest video feature Anglian Football looks once more at girls football in New Delhi. 'Come on, Women Power!' As one of the girls at the tournament exclaims.

An overview of the 1st DSA Inter-School Girls Football Tournament, in which schools from across Delhi battled for Football Supremacy. They caught up with the girls during the tournament, only to get mesmerized by their enthusiasm, infectious energy and love for the game.

VIDEO: 1st DSA Inter-School Girls Football Tournament finals

Anglian Football talks to the people behind girls football in Delhi; the students, parents and coaches, to capture the competition, pride and sheer exhilaration of the teams that clashed in the finals of the 1st DSA Girls Inter-School Tournament. Tagore International School and Vasant Valley played each other for the final at Jasola grounds in New Delhi.

VIDEO - DD News: Ist DSA Inter School Girls Tournament finals!

Here a DD News report about intiatives being taken in women football by covering the 1st DSA Inter School Girls football tournament.

The Girls talk about their passion for the game and Guest of Honour Sandeep Narang, Chief Strategy Officer at Anglian Football speaks about how the game of football can be made sustainable in India.

VIDEO: Durand Cup "Purani Dilli ki Zubani"

Here the latest feature from Anglian Football about Old Delhi inhabitants who have been watching the Durand Cup since pre-Independence days. They have their interesting stories and instincts. They bet on football and have had fights with knives on referee decisions. The colourful characters that hang out at the Ambedkar Stadium during the Durand Cup are shown.

VIDEO: Footage from 2012 Durand Cup Closing ceremony & Final Highlights

The 125th Durand Cup ended on September 1 with Air India for the first-ever lifting the Durand Cup trophy! In a Mumbai derby Air India beat Dodsal FC in a penalty shootout. Here the footage from the final and closing ceremony by Anglian Football.

VIDEO: Footage from the 2012 Durand Cup 2012 Semifinals

The 125th Durand Cup ended last Saturday with Air India for the first-ever winning the trophy. Here is footage put together by Anglian Holding from the two semifinals Air India vs Sesa Football Academy and Dodsal FC vs Assam Rifles at the Ambedkar Stadium.

Anglian Holdings comes forward to support 125th Durand Cup

There is finally good news for India's oldest football tournament, the 125th Durand Cup as Anglian Holdings, an NRI-owned multi-national corporation with diverse global investments, today announced that the company has joined hands with the Indian defence forces to support the 125th edition of the Durand Cup.

This news comes after a key sponsor in mobile cellular company Micromax pulled out due to their overspending on India's cricket tour of Sri Lanka.

Anglian Holdings would associate as a sponsor to aid one of the most prestigious and historical annual sporting events in India. The Durand Cup, first held in 1888 in Shimla, and currently being organized under the aegis of the Indian defence forces in Delhi, is Asia's oldest and the world's third oldest football tournament.

Anglian Holdings is a young and dynamic company with interests in various exciting sectors including sports. The company, which has a vision of working towards the upliftment of Indian football and taking the sport in India to the next level, has club football investments in Shillong Lajong FC & Danish football club FC Vestsjælland through its subsidiary, Anglian Football, to provide new avenues for Indian talent and create an Indo-European pipeline for bi-directional exchange of talent, knowledge and expertise.

Anglian Holdings and the Durand Football Tournament Society also announced that while the company is associating itself as one of the sponsors of this year's edition of the Durand Cup, it is in talks with the society for a long-term association to jointly work with the strategic intent of enhancing the standard of the tournament via a marketing and promotional deal as well.

Commenting on Anglian Holding's association with the 125th Durand Cup, the Chairman of the Durand Football Tournament Society Lt. General V K Pillai, AVSM, SM said, "We welcome Anglian Holdings into the folds of the Durand Cup as a co-sponsor and appreciate their gesture of coming forward to promote the prestigious tournament and look forward to a long association for promoting football in the country."

On joining hands with the Durand Cup, Uday Narang, Chairman at Anglian Holdings said, "At Anglian, we want to make a definite and positive contribution towards the improvement of Indian football, and following our twin investments in Shillong Lajong FC and FC Vestsjælland, we see this association with the Durand Cup as another step in that direction. We are extremely proud to partner a prestigious and historically significant tournament like the Durand Cup, and are thankful to the Indian defence forces for giving us the opportunity."

VIDEO: Football ke Fundae - Episode 1

Anglian Football has started a new series of short films on the culture and philosophy around football, called 'Football ke Fundae'. Directed by film-maker Imran Khan, who was Co-Director and Editor for Main Tumhara Kavi Hoon (I am your poet) at the Mumbai International Film Festival (MIFF) 2012 which was awarded the Golden Conch for 'best documentary'.

The Anglian Football production team caught up with the Netaji Subhash Football Academy team in the capital. The founder Shubhashish Dutta and his team are trying to bring passion and motivation in football and there is of course some football fundas by them as well!

VIDEO: Trials at Delhi's Hindustan Football Academy

Anglian Football caught up with Delhi's Hindustan FC during their Hindustan Football Academy trials at the Thyagraj Sports Complex, Lodhi Road in New Delhi earlier this month. They spoke to D.K. Bose, director and working president of HFC, on the state of Indian football; while their Spanish Coach Oscar Bruzon spoke about the football talent in the country. And finally, they saw Sunil Chhetri hanging out with the children present at the trial!

Three Shillong Lajong FC players to train in Denmark

In a first of its kind three players from I-League side Shillong Lajong FC - Eugeneson Lyngdoh, Lalramluaha and Lalthuammawia Ralte - are heading for Europe to get specialised training at Danish first division (second tier of Danish football) club FC Vestsjælland, which is a partner club of Lajong through their common co-owners Anglian Holdings.

At the time of announcing that they are buying a stake at Shillong Lajong, the Dubai-based Anglian Holdings had said that they would enable players from Lajong FC to train in Denmark to gain international exposure and the annoucement was made yesterday, the same day as FCV's signing of PIO Netan Sansara ( PIO Netan Sansara signs for Danish club FC Vestsjælland ).

The three talented footballer leave leave Shillong today and will be in Denmark for a couple of weeks until July 29. They will have access to quality training facilities and will be looking to make full use of this international exposure. The trip will also serve as an exercise to gauge the standards of the I-League players, as the three boys seek to gain valuable international experience from this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Over the last couple of years Shillong Lajong FC has send an astounding 23 of its junior players to Europe through football development projects and tournaments held by Manchester United, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan; but sending three professional footballers to Denmark for a two week specialised training camp is also something new for the club.

Lajong General Secretary Larsing Ming Sawyan said, "the trip will serve as a platform to provide SLFC and its players an insight into European club football and learn from the experience. We hope to conduct many such exposure trips in the future which shall include promising players,junior coaching staff,as well as managers and executives of SLFC."

An excited local Shillong boy Eugeneson Lyngdoh said, "I am very excited about going to Denmark and getting the experience to play with international players. It will be a new experience and I am eagerly looking forward to it. We have heard so much about European players and to actually get to play alongside them will take my playing to a new level. It will also equipped me with better skills and knowledge to grow as a footballer."

Former Tata Football Academy cadet Lalramluaha added, "I am quite excited and happy about the trip as I will get to learn new things in good training facilities."

PIO Netan Sansara signs for Danish club FC Vestsjælland

English-born 'Player of Indian Origin' Netan Sansara is set to join Danish first division (second tier of Danish football) club FC Vestsjælland depending on obtaining the necessary Danish work permit.

22 year old Netan Sansara joins FC Vestsjælland after a successful trial a few weeks ago and would join the club on a one year contract. FCV have Indian co-owners in Anglian Football owned by Dubai-based Anglian Holdings, who also are shakeholders in I-League club Shillong Lajong FC.

Anglian Football is working to create opportunities in professional football in Europe for Indian footballers and for footballers of Indian origin with the signing of Netan by their co-owned club FCV can be seen as a first step in that direction.

Netan Sansara had his first break in professional football with his home town club Walsall FC, for whom he made 40 appearances in the English League One. During this time, his performances culminated in him representing England at Under-18 and Under-19 level, making his debut against Holland at Yeovil Town's Huish Park and him being the first full Asian-born footballer to represent England with Michael Chopra being only half-Indian.

After leaving Walsall FC, Netan played for Dundee FC (Scotland) and non-league English club Corby Town, before making his move to Cyprus last summer to play for second division side PAEEK FC and after a successful season there he now moves to Denmark for a new chapter in his playing career.

Opinion on Indian Football: Dhruv Ratra (Anglian Holdings)

At the Soccerex European Forum last week in Manchester Indian football was well represented with over 20 people there from federations, the government, institutions, agencies and clubs. I spoke to some of these people to get their views on Indian football and will run a series across the week with these very interesting different view points.

I finish the series with the views of Dhruv Ratra (Anglian Holdings, CEO Sports).


Where do we stand with Indian football today?

Indian football is at a point of inflection! Here my mathematical background coming out... And I think that it (Indian football) has tremendous potential over the next 10-20-30 years.

If the stars are aligned, there is proper planning thats put in place. The talent is there, the passion is there, the interest is there, money is there. Now we just need to get the important things like the coaching and putting in place a long-term vision for kids to be able to go out and do something which right now stops at the age of 12/13 because there is no future potential (career road map).

I am optimistic and which is why we (Anglian Holdings) have invested in India!


Earlier I had done an Interview with Dhruv Ratra (Anglian Holdings) on the Shillong Lajong FC & FC Vestsjælland (Denmark) investment

Interview with Dhruv Ratra (Anglian Holdings), Shillong Lajong FC

I had the chance to catch-up with Dhruv Ratra, the CEO of Sports and Marketing at Anglian Holdings, the company which only a few weeks ago acquired a 25% stake in I-League side Shillong Lajong FC. Through the interview I wanted to find out more about what Anglian Holdings stands for, their aims and ambitions in football, especially Indian football.


Please tell the readers a little about Anglian Holding and your yourself?

Anglian Holdings is an NRI-owned (Non-Resident Indian) diverse multi-national company that has established a variety of businesses and partnerships across India, the US and Europe, such as steel manufacturing, commodities trading, green energy, real estate, luxury retirement homes, leisure resorts, beauty and lifestyle, business incubation, sports, etc. Our goal is to create and sustain successful businesses based upon Indian entrepreneurship and ingenuity. For more details, please visit www.anglianholdings.com . My personal involvement with the company is in the capacity of CEO of Sports and Marketing.

I left India more than 25 years ago to pursue further studies at the University of Chicago and then MIT, after which I experienced success as a serial entrepreneur based out of Silicon Valley. More than anything else, I have been playing football (soccer) from a very early age and in 1982 even attempted to get a scholarship to play in West Germany (which did not happen, for obvious reasons). While playing competitively in the US, I was fortunate to be associated with some of the first US football players who went over to play at the highest levels in Europe during the late 80s / early 90s, and was directly exposed to their experiences.


Anglian first invested in Danish second tier club FC Vestsjælland. When was it and why?

Once we had formulated our strategy towards raising the standard of football in India, we decided that it would be best to partner with a team that was heading in the right direction and which was under experienced, professional management. Furthermore, FCV was already training a couple of lads from North Korea, and were excited to scout emerging countries in Asia such as India for new talent. Finally, we believe that in order for Indian players to reach their potential, they need to showcase their talents at the right level. As a result, we went decided to partner with and invest in FC Vestsjælland in Spring/Summer of 2011.


Now comes the investment in Shillong Lajong FC. Why Lajong?

Anglian Holdings has always been interested in partnering with 'businesses' that have a good management team and a strong foundation. In the case of a football club, this translates to an established club that has close ties with its fan base and community, and is an extension of them. After our deal with FC Vestsjælland in Denmark during Spring/Summer of 2011, we began to look at and meet with a number of clubs all over India. Finally, towards the end of the year, and after numerous meetings between the two parties, it became clear that both Shillong Lajong and Anglian Holdings had very similar objectives for the future and an alliance was agreed to.


What inputs can Anglian give to Lajong to improve the club?

We won't be providing any tactical on-the-field inputs. Our expertise is operational in nature. We will assist in the training and exchange or players and coaching staff. We will also help build a world-class academy as well as help them develop closer ties with their fans and sponsors.


What opportunities of cooperation do you see between SLFC and FCV?

We feel that both sides can cooperate and share their knowledge and expertise at a number of levels. For starters, Lajong is planning to send some lads for evaluation and training to FCV hopefully as early as this summer. Once the initial visit takes place we will be in better position to evaluate other avenues of cooperation.


What are Anglian's long-term aims in Indian football?

I believe that football in India is at an inflection point. In recent years, India and Indians have experienced tremendous success globally in business, cricket, individual sports and now the time has come for football. However, as one can observe from the experiences of the US, Korea and Japan, we do not expect things to change overnight - it will be a long and gradual process, one that starts from the ground up. It is Anglian's objective to participate in this change no matter how long it takes. Not only do we aspire to raise the standard of the sport and coaching within India, we are also looking at new ways to help teams better connect with fans, journalists and bloggers, all of whom play an extremely important role that will help shape the next Messi or Maradona.

VIDEO: Anglian investment into Shillong Lajong FC

News television channel NDTV has done a story on the investment by Anglian Holding in Shillong Lajong FC after they had earlier bought a stake in Danish second division side FC Vestsjælland. This is the first time an NRI has invested in Football clubs on two different continents and thereby is creating a bi-directional pipeline for players, coaching and sporting infrastructure.






Here the article on the Anglian Holding investment - Lajong FC: Anglian Holding new investor, partnership with Danish club .

Lajong FC: Anglian Holding new investor, partnership with Danish club

In a first for Indian football NRI-owned Anglian Holding from Dubai, who are a multi-national company with diversified interests, has bought into I-League side Shillong Lajong FC with upto 25% of the clubs shares going to exchange ownership.

This was announced yesterday at a press conference in Kolkata which was attended by Dhruv Ratra, Anglian Holding - Sports & Marketing CEO; Larsing Ming Sawyan, SLFC General Secretary; and Kurt Andersen, FC Vestsjælland president.

Anglian Holding has been looking at options to invest and get involved with Indian football for some time. Now comes the investment in Shillong Lajong FC, who both hope to take the club forward.

But for Anglian Holding this isn't their first investment in football. A while ago they became 25% stakeholders in Danish first Division (second tier of Danish football) FC Vestsjælland, who are also known as FCV Vikings and are a development club in Denmark.

Now with these two clubs in India and Denmark, Anglian Holding hope to create a talent, know-how and expertise exchange. In the future FCV could become an entry point into Europe for talented Indian youngsters, while FCV coaches work with children and their Indian counterparts.