CHANDIGARH: Minerva Punjab FC, the 2017-18 I-League champions, Tuesday announced a 50-50 merger with RoundGlass Sports Private Limited, another Punjab-based company focused on grassroots development of football.
The merger allows RoundGlass Sports access to Minerva Punjab’s players from the under-11 to under-18 teams. The partnership will also see RoundGlass Sports expand Minerva Punjab’s grassroots programme.
While RoundGlass Sports will access to the youth teams, Minerva Punjab will continue to operate and manage the senior team.
Following the merger, Minerva Punjab owner Ranjit Bajaj said,”This is a match made in heaven. I could not be happier. I personally believe that RoundGlass Sports is a saviour for the future of Indian football. With this merger, our kids will have access to the globally recognised coaching staff and facilities.”
Confirming the development, Gurpreet “Sunny” Singh, CEO RoundGlass said: “Punjab Minerva have proven results for their U-18 programs; so, I’m excited to say the least. We now have access to approximately 120 children across all ages who are a step closer to be being inducted into our world-class football academy; through our talent program. In keeping with our vision, our only aim is to ensure that we offer these children a genuine opportunity to perform on the global stage. We look forward to that.”
Ranjit Bajaj, (now) co-owner of the club: “This is a match made in heaven. I could not be happier. I personally believe that RoundGlass Sports is a saviour for the future of Indian football. With this merger our kids will have access to the globally recognized coaching staff and facilities.”
Bajaj further told Indian Express: “We were thinking about selling a stake in Minerva Punjab FC and the negotiation were being held for the last two months. There was a time when we walked out of the talks but joined again later. For the last 5-6 years. Minerva Punjab FC has been close to my heart and when we got a good offer, we considered it since it will only strengthen the club’s finances,”
“We were cutting our expenditure as we were struggling with finances. When we won the I-League in 2018, we had a budget of Rs 1.4 crore (Rs 14 million) while teams like Mohun Bagan spent Rs 3.8 crore (Rs 38 million) on one player. But we showed that titles can be won with a good team and players. Over the years, we won seven national titles in various categories and I am sure we will win more.”
Promoted by Silicon Valley millionaire Gurpreet “Sunny” Singh, Roundglass runs grassroots programmes in football centres across Punjab.
Founded in 2014, RoundGlass Sports is a wholly owned subsidiary of RoundGlass, a Seattle-based venture capital firm which also has its offices in India, including in Mohali.
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