MUMBAI: Football focused NGO Slum Soccer kicked of the 2018 edition of its National Inclusion Cup here Tuesday at Tiger Play in Lokhandwala, Andheri West.
A total of 48 teams from various states across India and Nepal are participating in the men’s and women’s category of the league-cum-knockout format tournament that runs through till 23 February.
The four-day tournament, being held in Mumbai for the second consecutive year, has teams from Gujarat, Haryana, Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Meghalaya, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Vidarbha, Maharashtra, Mumbai, Assam, Manipur & Nepal in contention. A total of 480 players are taking part in the event across 24 men’s and 24 women’s team.
“It’s one of the most celebrated initiatives of Slum Soccer. This tournament has allowed us to reach out to a larger audience, create awareness about our work and also has created heroes out of people from all walks of life. The event not only is a platform to showcase football skills but also a place where participants can take inspiration from one another and grow with the sport,” said Slum Soccer CEO Dr Abhijeet Barse.
“It’s such a proud moment for every one of us at Slum Soccer that this event is growing in size and stature with every passing year. Our mission is to spread our wings as much as possible and engage with as many underprivileged youth as possible through the National Inclusion Cup. We thank all our partners in giving wings to our vision and look forward to their continued support,” said Slum Soccer founder Vijay Barse.
One of the earliest initiatives of Slum Soccer, The National Inclusion Cup has been providing a genuine platform for all organisations that aim to enhance overall quality of life for the underprivileged through the sport of football. Apart from participation, this tournament also becomes a learning curve as the game of football is used as a means to connect individuals and teaching life skills.
At the conclusion of the tournament, the talent identification team will select 25 probables that will receive intensive training in football and social skills to eventually form men’s and women’s teams to represent India at the 16th Homeless World Cup where over 60 nations meet every year for the World Championship.
Since its inception in 2002,the National Inclusion Cup has taken place across India. From 2010, organisers added women’s category to the event. The first tournament was held in Nagpur which saw 16 states participating. The 2017 National Inclusion Cup had 24 men’s and 16 women’s teams and one team from Nepal participating.
Till date the National Inclusion Cup has engaged 4,580 underprivileged youth while 180 men and women from underprivileged backgrounds have represented India at Homeless World Cup since 2007.
