Subrata Pal has arrived in Germany's Leipzig!

Indian international and Prayag United SC goalkeeper Subrata Pal arrived in Leipzig around mid-day today after flying in from Kolkata via Mumbai and Frankfurt/Main for his trial-cum-training stint with German fourth Division (Regionalliga Nordost) side RB Leipzig.

The two week trial-cum-training trip to Germany has been made possible by the Indian division of Red Bull, who are the owners of RB Leipzig and who have signed a one year deal with Subrata Pal to help develop the goalkeeper further with his career.

The senior team of RB Leipzig is currently away on a week-long pre-season training camp in Bad Aussee in Austria which ends on Wednesday, July 25. Therefore Subrata will train with the Under-23 team of RB Leipzig, who play in the sixth division Landesliga Sachsen, to get time to acclimatise to German conditions.

A let-jagged Subrata Pal arrived in the east German town of Leipzig, got himself a local sim card to call his family to tell them that he has arrived safely and then took some rest. He has an off-day tomorrow on Sunday and will join the practice with the RB Leipzig Under-23s on Monday. Then the action starts for him.


Here the link to the Photos: Red Bull India/Subrata Pal press conference in Kolkata

Please LIKE www.facebook.com/arunfoot & follow @Arunfoot on Twitter to get further updates on Subrata Pal's trial in Germany along with further news on what the other Indian footballers and Players of Indian origin are doing in Europe!

VIDEO: Subrata Pal press conference ahead of Leipzig trip

This is a video (in Bengali) from the daily show football.com about Thursday's press conference in Kolkata of Red Bull India announcing Subrata Pal's trial-cum-training stint in Germany with RB Leipzig from today onwards.

Subrata Pal ready for RB Leipzig trial

At a Red Bull India organised press conference at the Hotel Hindusthan International in Kolkata today, the Austrian energy drink maker formally announced the trial of Indian international goalkeeper Subrata Pal at German fourth division (Regionalliga Nordost) club RB Leipzig.

For 25 year old Subrata Pal, who had recently signed for Kolkata side Prayag United SC, this will not be his first visit to Germany. In August 2002 a young Subrata was part of the then India Under-17 national team which held a camp at the Sports School in Hennef and now he returns to the country a decade after his first visit.

At the press conference Subrata said, "I'm a fan of German team and their former goalkeeper Oliver Kahn. By God's grace if I get a chance to play in the Bundesliga my dream will come true."

"It's fair to say that German football development plans are about the best in the world at the moment. It's always been a dream for me to train in a system that pushes things to the next level."

People who simply lack the football knowledge are critical about Subrata giving a trial to a fourth division in Germany. On that Subrata answered, "I'm confident that RB Leipzig is the place where I can really push myself and can develop myself into a better and stronger player."

Subrata leaves Kolkata tomorrow night and will be in Leipzig by mid-day on Saturday. He will be in Germany until August 5 and he would then join the India preparatory camp ahead of the 2012 Nehru Cup. Subrata has gotten clearances from his new club Prayag United SC and as well as the AIFF for the trial.

New RB Leipzig head coach Alexander Zorniger said in a statement about the Indian goalkeepers visit, "We are delighted to have Subrata as a part of RB Leipzig during the off-season training. It will be a two week developmen and trial programme and we are really looking forward to it. We would like to understand during this training how we may potentially use his expertise in the future and also understand the depth of Indian football."


Here the link to the Photos: Red Bull India/Subrata Pal press conference in Kolkata

Please LIKE www.facebook.com/arunfoot to get further updates on Subrata Pal's trial in Germany along with further news on what the other Indian footballers and Players of Indian origin are doing in Europe!

Photos: Red Bull India/Subrata Pal press conference in Kolkata

Red Bull India organised a press conference in Kolkata today to formally announce the trial of Indian international goalkeeper Subrata Pal with German fourth division (Regionalliga Nordost) side RB Leipzig, a club owned by Red Bull.

Here some photos from the press conference:

Some insight on RB Leipzig & Red Bull Football

Many will only know Austrian energy drink maker Red Bull as being active in Formula 1 and adventure sports under owner Dietrich Mateschitz, but they actually own three football clubs in Austria, Germany and the United States besides running two Academies in Brazil and Ghana. With these five entities in four continents Red Bull has the biggest network of clubs/academies in the world of football under their ownership.

It all started in Salzburg in 2005, which is close to the Red Bull headquarters in Walz-Siezenheim, with the takeover of ailing SV Austria Salzburg then called SV Wüstenrot Salzburg and the club was rebranded as Red Bull Salzburg. It has won the Austrian Bundesliga a number of times, but owner Mateschitz has wanted the club to play amongst the best in the UEFA Champions League but the club has failed again and again in the qualifiers.

Only a year later Red Bull purchased the New York MetroStars in 2006 and it completely re-brand the franchise, changing the name, colours, and logo. From then on the MLS team has been known as New York Red Bulls. This was followed by the formation of the Academies of Red Bull Brasil in 2007 and Red Bull Ghana in 2008, which are supposed to work as feeder clubs to the bigger entities in Europe and North America.

In May 2009 followed the takeover of German fifth division club SSV Markranstädt and the renaming into RB Leipzig with the RB not standing for Red Bull but RasenBallsport Leipzig due to German football rules which do not allow the name of sponsors to be attached to the club name. At the time SSV Markranstädt were a local club in Leipzig playing fifth division football and with little ambitions to move higher. This changed with the Red Bull takeover as their new owners had the aim of getting the club into the top tier Bundesliga in a nine year period until 2018 with an initial investment of 100 Million Euros.

It worked well in year one under manager Tino Vogel with the club getting promoted into the fourth division. But over the last couple of years under coaches Thomas Oral and Peter Pacult with the team playing in the former 2006 World Cup stadium with a capacity of 44,345 now renamed Red Bull Arena they didn't get promoted though having the highest budget across leagues in the fourth tier of German football. This season Andreas Zorniger with some changes amongst the players has been given the task to gain promotion to the 3.Liga.

Now Indian goalkeeper Subrata Pal joins the club on a trial to show what he is capable off and if successful then Subrata could be offered a contract at RB Leipzig.

Here the article on India Keeper Subrata Pal set for German trial at RB Leipzig

India Keeper Subrata Pal set for German trial at RB Leipzig

25 year old Indian international goalkeeper Subrata Pal is set for a trial with German fourth Division (Regionalliga Nordost) club RB Leipzig, who are owned by Austrian energy drink-maker Red Bull whose Indian division has been made the trial possible.

Subrata Pal after a season of injury this summer made a move back to Kolkata from Pune FC to join high spending Prayag United SC for a salary estimated to be above Rs 1 crore (10 Million), but Subrata has always had the ambition to try to play abroad. Now he gets a second chance after a trial with now MLS club Vancouver Whitecaps in June 2010.

The Leipzig trial has been made possible by Red Bull India and once Subrata has his German visa, he will fly across with Friday/Saturday the most likely dates of travel. An original three week trial had to be cut down due to commitments back home. Subrata has got the clearance from Prayag United for the trial while the AIFF would have to clear his late arrival at the India camp for the Nehru Cup due to a longer stay in Germany until August 4/5.

More infos will be released by Red Bull India and Subrata Pal at a press conference on Thursday in Kolkata before Subrata flies across to Germany for the trial-cum-training stint.

RB Leipzig with the RB not standing for Red Bull but RasenBallsport Leipzig due to German football rules which do not allow the name of sponsors to be attached to the club name was only formed in 2009 through the takeover of SSV Markranstädt, a local club in Leipzig who were playing in the fifth division at the time. Red Bull took over the club with the aim of getting it into the top tier Bundesliga in a nine year period until 2018 with an initial investment of 100 Million Euros.

After two failed attempts to gain promotion from the fourth division this season RB Leipzig hope to achieve promotion to the 3.Liga on their way to the Bundesliga. And this will happen under new coach Andreas Zorniger with some new players signed to achieve the goal and interesting Leipzig on arrival of Zorniger fired goalkeeper Pascal Borel.

This is an article I had written two years back in June 2010 on my blog: Knowing Subrata Pal .

Rangnick & Houllier join Red Bull Football operations

Austrian energy drink maker Red Bull is best known for their Formula 1 team and their activities in adventure sports, but they are also active in football with their worldwide football operations spread across the globe in Austria, Germany, the United States, Brazil and Ghana.

But in football Red Bull, owned by the Austrian billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz, have not been as successful as in other sports and now a new management is supposed to bring success to them but especially Red Bull Salzburg with German Roger Schmidt as the new coach, another German in Ralf Rangnick as the Director of Sports and Frenchman Gérard Houllier as Global Sports Director Red Bull Soccer to complete the new leadership structure within their football operations.

Roger Schmidt, who last season coached SC Paderborn to a sensational fifth place finish in 2.Bundesliga, is the new head coach of the Salzburg team; Ralf Rangnick as Director of Sports will have to look after Salzburg and German fourth division side RB Leipzig; while Gérard Houllier will have to look after Salzburg, Leipzig, MLS franchise New York Red Bulls besides the developmental academies in Brazil and Ghana.

Especially Rangnick was a much sought after coach across Europe with clubs like Tottenham Hotspurs, West Bromwich Albion, etc; but he in the end decided to join Red Bull as Director of Sports in a more management role rather then a day to day coaching job. The reason might be that Rangnick had last season left FC Schalke 04 due to a burnout syndrome and now returns to active football.

Red Bull Street Style coming to India - Register now!

The 2012 edition of the Red Bull Street Style returns to India in the coming weeks to find the top Freestyle Footballer's in the country with the winner headed to Italy to represent India at the World Finals to compete against the best freestylers from around the world.

There will be five city qualifiers in Pune (May 25), New Delhi (May 26), Mumbai (June 1), Hyderabad (June 2) and Kolkata (June 8) with the Indian National finals on June 9 in Kolkata to decide the Indian representative in the world finals.


Here is some important information you need to know for Red Bull Street Style 2012

How to compete?

Rules: 3 minutes, 2 players, 1 ball.
You can sign-up for Street Style by visiting the official page of the Red Bull Street Style 2012 .


Checking out the action?

Come to the event, makes loads of noise, have a great time, smile for the camera and we'll make you famous!


Budding Photographer?

If you fancy yourself with a camera and want to cover any of the events, do drop us a mail at wings.redbull@gmail.com and we'll take things from there. If you do shoot the event and your photographs get used, you will be given photo credit on our website, Flickr and wherever else the photograph might get used.