Can Katrina Kaif & Deepika Padukone help promote Indian football?

Bollywood actor Sunil Shetty on Friday evening at the Goa International Football Table had made a comment that Bollywood actors and especially female stars were needed to make the beautiful game more sexy in India.

"If we are talking about making football sexy, we will have to talk to Deepika (Padukone) and Katrina (Kaif)," Sunil Shetty said at the G.I.F.T.

"Look at what David Beckham has done to American soccer. He has made a huge difference by his presence there," Sunil Shetty added.

So does Sunil Shetty have a point here? Unlike journalist colleagues who have written that Katrina Kaif and Deepika Padukone should come and play the sport, I feel that Sunil Shetty rather meant their participation in the promotion of the game in which the leading ladies of Bollywood could give added glamour to Indian football.

This would surely be something which would help Indian football, but then there would be an added cost which sponsors would have to bear.

And are they ready to do that? One has to wait and see then surely there is interest in football amongst the Bollywood heroes as is openly known about Shahrukh Khan, John Abraham, Abhishek Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor and others...

Inaugural Goa International Football Table 2013 a big success - Part 2!

Day two of the inaugural Goa International Football Table was an action-packed day full of insightful presentations and seminars focusing on various aspects of Goan and Indian football. Eminent speakers from the Indian and international football fraternity shared their views and discussed solutions on how to make football a more recognized sport in our country.

Listed below is a brief summary of every session conducted at today's summit

Efficient use of stadium infrastructure
The day began with an astute presentation by Paul Fletcher, ex-CEO of Burnley FC, on the 'Efficient use of stadium infrastructure'. Mr. Fletcher not only gave an insight and thoughtful understanding about the infrastructure for football stadiums in England, but also highlighted the importance of how India needs to investigate and learn from their mistakes to help develop good and effective stadium infrastructure in India.

According to Paul Fletcher, who played for Burnley, Bolton Wanderers and FC Blackpool, the Three Buzz Words required for proper infrastructure were: Legacy, Community and Revenue. "While building infrastructure, do not forget to build the people," he said.

Talent Development: Goa, the catalyst & gateway to Indian football success
Asian Football Confederation - Coach education head Mohamed Basir in his presentation briefed the audience on the concept of Talent Development and its importance in football.
Stressing on aspects such as Nature or Nurture, Chance or Design and Quantity or Quality, he spoke about how Goa could be a model state in the field of football. In conclusion, he appealed to football lovers present to remain unified, as in the long run it is this unity which is crucial for the upliftment of Indian football.

Then I took over the panel discussion in which Henry Menezes, CEO of the Western India Football Association, focused on building players and creating pathways for them. He said, "We have to understand whether we need to 'build' players or 'buy' players."

Salgaocar FC secretary Raj Gomes gave a brief understanding of talent development strategies at his club; while Kenny Moyes, Managing Director - Libero Professional Pre-Season Tours Ltd spoke about the participation and consistency of the players towards the sport.

Mariano Baretto, of Goan origin and a UEFA Pro license coach, believes that different opportunities help in shaping young football players' careers. "Our world has produced many fantastic players such as Roonie, Messi and Ronaldo who have contributed towards the sports success and recognition worldwide," said Mariano.

Community Development: Sports (Football) - The simple upliftment of society
Kushal Das, AIFF General Secretary, spoke about the FIFA Football for Hope program, its principle being, "Keeping Communities Connected." He also mentioned about the success of the Goalz Project in Kolkata launched in 2012 as it engaged not only the community but also the local police force.
"Sports, especially football is inspirational and has a global reach. It also teaches us the values of life," Das said.

P.K. Mukherjee, MD of Vedanta SESA FA spoke about football being a community game and stated that theGoa Football Development Council (GFDC) should become the Indian Football Development Council (IFDC) in the future.
"Football is a performing art and can be developed only with passion," says Mukherjee.

According to Sports commentator and writer Novy Kapadia, "Football is Goa's identity." He believes that although Indian football has not been very successful, it does have a long history.

Ajay Shetty, Head training and accreditation, Magic Bus along with Peter Vaz, Sporting Clube de Goa president, had a similar viewpoint on how AIFF needed to show more support towards the development of football. Ajay Shetty further went on to give a brief insight on the working of Magic Bus.

Peter Vaz also added that there were lack of stadiums, which according to him should be small with good road connectivity, and that government associations should be revived towards the upliftment of the sport.

Marketing & Sponsorship: When Football meets Moneyball
The GIFT had a panel discussion on the topic 'Marketing and Sponsorship' in football with Radhakrishnan Sreenivasan, Sports Editor and Senior presenter of Neo Sports, moderating the session which gave a distinguishing aspect between cricket and football.

Keynote speaker for the session, Hass Aminian, Director of New Business Development at Sportfive International (Asia), in his presentation 'When football meets Moneyball' proposed some of the marketing strategies that could enhance the football market. Mr. Aminian, in his presentation gave examples of the English and Spanish models.
Aminian also pointed some of the drawbacks in Indian football. He said that Indians lack participation in any major sports, secondly that dominance in India is linked to national team performance and not at local level and thirdly that India lacks infrastructure to host major events.

"Stop taking steps, look for an elevator," stated, Chairman and Co-founder of Taproot, Agnello Dias. According to him, the Goa Football Association should promote football amongst the people who are interested in the sport rather than the ones already playing.

Valanka Alemao, Churchill Brothers CEO, pointed out that although Bollywood and Cricket has a national front, football still continues to be popular even among Indians. She put forward her opinion about how we needed to package Indian football better to make it more attractive. "Football is the most expensive and attractive ball," she added.

CEO of Sportskeeda Porush Jain stated, "The Indian economy is continuously growing, for the betterment of Indian football, the exploitation of the Indian market is necessary."

Rajesh Kharabanda, CEO of Nivia-Freewill Sports Pvt. Ltd. added to the discussion by suggesting that in order to increase revenue, the clubs needed to increase their fan base.

The Professionals: Upgrading our Competition to Export Stars
GIFT's final session on 'The Professional' began with a presentation by the keynote speaker, R. Sasikumar, Ex-Captain of the Singapore football team, and MD of Red Card Group. Sasikumar in his presentation on 'Upgrading our competition to export stars' gave an example of Japan's rise on the football ground mentioning their 100 years plan 2012.
He also introduced the heroes that changed the face of Spanish and Japanese football. He focused on the need for more I-Leagues that would lead to the success of the national teams. He felt that India needed to invest and commit more economy in a footballer - the parents, clubs, agents and federations. To conclude his presentation he stated, "India needs more players."

Team India coach Wim Koevermans stood-up and appealed to the audience to take inspiration from the Nike logo "Just do it". "You build the best, bring the best and play against the best" said Wim in context to building professionals.

Meanwhile Srinivas Dempo, AIFF Vice-President, GFA and Dempo president, while talking about building professional players, pointed out that in the past 10 years, India has witnessed change but there is still a need for rapid change.

Joshua Lewis, CEO of Kenkre Football Academy, focused on grassrooot level planning and development of player professionalism.

The Closing Ceremony
The closing ceremony of the Goa International Football Table was held on Saturday afternoon in the presence of Dr. Rufino Monteiro and the chief guest, Francis D'Souza, deputy CM of Goa.

The closing ceremony began with the sum-up of the two day summit by Udit Sheth - MD & CEO TransStadia, the knowledge partners of GFDC. Followed by the concluding address by Dr. Monteiro in which he thanked all the speakers and delegates and all the exemplary players whilst promising to make the summit an annual event and show-case the progress in the GFDC endeavour taking valuable inputs from the seminar. He acknowledged the participation of the Bollywood star, Suniel Shetty and current India skipper, Sunil Chhetri during the parade held earlier in the day.

The ceremony followed with a speech by the chief guest, wherein he commented on the efforts put in by the GFDC towards popularizing football. "Rufino Monteiro is on a very serious mission and will take the right step in the right direction to achieve success."

Thereafter the 1978 National School Games gold medalist team was then felicitated - the Manager…John Viegas, Baptist Fernandes, Peter Miranda, Ignacious Dias, Sarto Baptista, Agnelo Fonseca, Joseph Cardozo, Tadeo Barretto, William Machado, Caitano D'Souza, Caitano D'Souza and the captain, Edmund Mascarenhas who was overwhelmed that their heroics in the freezing cold of Srinagar were finally recognised by the government through GFDC.

The function concluded with the vote of thanks by Kennedy D'Silva - Executive Secretary of the Goa Football Development Council.

Inaugural Goa International Football Table 2013 a big success - Part 1!

The inaugural Goa International Football Table was held on March 15/16 at the Goa Marriott Resort & Spa. The two day summit focused on various aspects of football such as infrastructure of football at the grassroot level, general Indian Football Development, Creating a New Sport: Beach Soccer, Efficient Use of Stadium Infrastructure, Talent Development, Community Development, Marketing and Sponsorship and Upgrading our Competition.

The first half of the session kicked off with an introduction by host Sonali Chander wherein the moderator, Stanislaus D'Souza introduced the panelists - Dr. Robin Petersen, Rajeev Piramal, Jovito Lopes and Sioulas Anastasios for the session. Mr. Petersen, CEO of South African Football Development Agency & Ex-CEO South African Football Association gave a brief introduction and background to the South African football scenario.

"Football has an incredible power to unite countries and to achieve success in football, funds had to be created along with business, government and football partners. This success would change the nation forever," Peterson said.

He shared the technical master plan of South Africa 2022 in which he said it would create a virtuous cycle of success and would unite the nation for national pride.

Rajeev Piramal, Owner of Pune FC and also the Vice-Chairman and MD of Peninsula Land Ltd., in his opening statement said, "There is lot to learn from the SAFA but at the end of the day, they are our competitors." He also stressed on the development of infrastructure justifying that infrastructure does not only mean good grounds and good facilities but also good coaches and good medical facilities.

Sioulas Anastasios, coach of Sesa Football Academy, stressed on the need for the development at the base level; while the Sports Editor of the Herald newspaper, Jovito Lopes stated that one of the reason for failure of football grabbing most eyeballs is the large fan loyalty to the international clubs rather than Indian clubs. He also said that not only the government support, but also Private Public Partnership (PPP) would help in the development of Football in India.

Thereafter Scott O'Donell (AIFF National Academies Technical Director) in his presentation, stressed on the development of football at the grassroot level. With context to this, he said that "This should have started 20 years back." He also proposed the Grassroot development plan for football in India.

Then the Goan Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar in his brief address spoke about football in a nutshell. With a sporty spirit he said, "Football gets you through life besides work."

Dr. Rufino Monteiro, Chairman of the Goa Football Development Council, expressed his gratitude towards the Honorable Chief Minister for his dedication and commitment in making football the official sport of the state, not just in words but also in action. "Football is not a fashion statement but it's about passionate dedication towards the sport," he said.

He further said that "Goa's aim is to produce good players and that GFDC is working towards it. Studies done in Indian cities reveal that football now attracts three times as many viewers as cricket, more so because today's youth want a fast, exciting game and 90 minutes of football ideally fits into their hectic lifestyle. A Nielsen survey in 2010 found that 47% of India's over 1.2 billion population described themselves as football fans. Interestingly, football also attracts the second highest sports sponsorship in India, out-ranking tennis, badminton, boxing, wrestling and athletics where India boasts of world class athletes, some even champions. There is so much to do to develop football in India."

The session ended with the launch of the Draft Goa Football Policy and the GFDC publication, which many hope will take Goan and Indian football onto the next level.

More in part two about the second day of the inaugural Goa International Football Table.

PHOTOs: GIFT School Parade including Sunil Chhetri, Sunil Shetty & ex-Internationals

The inaugural 'Goa International Football Table' was held on Friday/Saturday in Panjim, Goa; where stalwarts from the football community were discussing the scope and future of football in India and formulating a concise football charter for the state of Goa.

Current India captain Sunil Chhetri, who now plays for Churchill Brothers SC, along with Bollywood action star Sunil Shetty, Dronacharya Awardee Syed Nayeemuddin, ex-Indian football players Magan Singh and Inder Singh alongwith popular football juggler Jestes Antony kicked-off the parade from Marriotts Goa on Saturday and from there on visited different schools around Panjim.

GIFT School Parade including Sunil Chhetri, Sunil Shetty & ex-Internationals

The inaugural 'Goa International Football Table' was held over the last couple of days in Panjim, Goa; where stalwarts from the football community were discussing the scope and future of football in India and formulating a concise football charter for the state of Goa.

Some of the greatest football stars from yesteryears alongwith players from the present Indian football team had come together to flag off the 'Goa International Football Table'.

Current India captain Sunil Chhetri, who now plays for Churchill Brothers SC, along with Bollywood action star Sunil Shetty, Dronacharya Awardee Syed Nayeemuddin, ex-Indian football players Magan Singh and Inder Singh alongwith popular football juggler Jestes Antony kicked-off the parade from Marriotts Goa at 10.00 am and from there on visited different schools around Panjim on Saturday.

The star-studded float led by Dr. Rufino Monteiro (Chairman, GFDC) and a fleet of staff from Goa Football Development Council interacted with school kids and gave away footballs sponsored by Nivia-Freewill to promote the fun-loving sport.

The gala parade made a stopover at Don Bosco School (Panjim), Sharda Mandir School (Miramar), Our Lady of the Rosary (Dona Paula), Auxilium Convent (Caranzalem) and finally Red Rosary School in Miramar. While the kids were overjoyed to meet their favourite football icons, the highlight of the parade was the felicitation of the stars by the Principal of each school.

Speaking on the occasion, Sunil Chhetri, said, "The difference between all of us here and you'll children is that you still have a chance to choose a career. You can be anything that you want in life but always follow your dream and while you do that, it's very important that you take up a sport because no matter what game you play, the game is going to make you a better human being and I can tell you that from my own experience."

As the awardees followed the entourage with pride, school students and the locals on the streets joined the convoy with full enthusiasm while football stars kept the excitement going with their animated stunts and friendly approach.

Topics at Goa International Football Table on March 15/16

The Goa Football Development Council (GFDC) will organize the football specific conference under the title 'Goa International Football Table' (GIFT) on March 15/16, 2013 with a view to catalyse the football industry.

Topics at the inaugural GIFT will be

Infrastructure – "Goa India's new football infra story"
Sports infrastructure India needs to be developed to match international standards for India to develop as a sporting nation. According to the VII All India Education Survey, only half of the primary schools in India have playing fields and less developed countries like Nigeria provide better sport facilities. The need of the hour is work at the grass root level. A strategic implementation of new ideas will help improve the condition of all sports in India. How can Goa be the pioneer of developing Football Infrastructure?

Talent development + Academy – "Goa, the Catalyst and Gateway to Indian Football Success"
In India, there are few hotbeds for football talent, Goa being one of them. A major reason for the same might be because football is embedded in Goan culture. But is this enough? New training methods and ways to groom talent are emerging each day. What needs to be done for the future so that Goa continues to produce more talent at the junior and senior levels? Are there any international examples that we need to look at?

Community development / social upliftment – "Sports, the simple upliftment of society"
Sporting events are known to play a massive role in promoting the culture of sports in society. Besides the economic impact of sporting event, the benefits cascade to the grassroots level. Is there any correlation between sporting success and Human Development Index? What role can a sport like football play to teach values of life to the next generation of Goa? How?

Marketing and sponsorship – "When football meets moneyball"
It is common knowledge that lion's share of India's media monies meant for sports sponsorship go to cricket. In the recent past few large corporates have sponsored sports that do not enjoy the mass appeal of cricket. Is this philanthropy or are these strategic investments? For football in Goa to flourish, what needs to be done so that regional and national companies look at football as an investment and not a mere CSR activity?

The Professionals – "Upgrading Our Competition to Export Stars"
Few footballers from India have had the opportunity to play in mature football markets. Recently, India Under-19 footballer Brandon Fernandes from Goa had a trial with Reading FC in UK. But is this just another flash in the pan? How can we create more 'stars'? What do we need to do so that someday a Goan footballer would play in one of the top football leagues in the world?

GFDC to organise inaugural Goa International Football Table on March 15/16

The Goa Football Development Council (GFDC) yesterday announced that it is organizing the first football specific conference in India on March 15/16, 2013 with a view to catalyse the football industry.

Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar will release the maiden football policy of the state, a first of its kind that will delineate a structured approach towards Goa's culture and help develop a football-based ecosystem. Taking note of the fact that football is hugely popular all over the state, the Chief Minister announced last year that football would be the official sport of the state of Goa.

The inaugural 'Goa International Football Table' (GIFT) will also lay the foundation to initiate vital dialogue on the importance of football in relation to the socio-economic development of Goa. Government officers, officials of football federations, clubs, players and coaches, members of the media, sponsors, brands and sports investors will attend the event.

Speaking about the Goa International Football Table, Dr. Rufino Monteiro, Chairman of the Goa Football Development Council, said, "Indian players possess immense talent, which needs to be nurtured in the right manner for them to shine. The inaugural Goa International Football Table is – for this reason – an important part of GFDC's multiple steps to channelize talent with the available infrastructure, facilities in the country and across the globe. The conference will be a landmark event in Goa and herald the beginning of a brand new journey in the development of football in India."

Elvis Gomes, Executive Director of the Sports Authority of Goa, Vice-President of the Goa Football Association, and Member Secretary of the Goa Football Development Council, said, "Over the years, Goa has been synonymous with good quality, skilled football. Through the Goa International Football Table, we are here to take it a step forward to help develop the game and present players across India multiple opportunities to excel. We are confident that the event will play a crucial role in altering the course of the game for its stakeholders."

The theme for the 2013 conference will be 'Home Grown Heroes', and eminent speakers from across the world representing different organizations in the global sports industry will deliberate India's pending emergence on the global footballing platform. GIFT will create a annual framework and an environment for investment in the sport, networking within the community and create a interface for the stakeholders. Discussions on topics ranging from talent, community development, competitions and infrastructure creation to professionalising the sport and marketing will be organized.

The 'GIFT Awards' will endeavour to honour and recognize young achievers in Goan football along with current and past players for life time achievement, players with promise, referee of the year, administrator of the year, and coach of the year awards. The winners will receive prize money and a trophy. GIFT intends to create corporate interest in the state to help support initiatives that facilitate the overall growth of football. It will also attract investment towards developing the sport at the grassroots and make Goa a football powerhouse and role model state in India.

The first edition of GIFT has received tremendous support from knowledge partner TransStadia, and will be promoted by football magazine 90 minutes along with online partner Sportskeeda.