NEW DELHI: All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel has announced that a world class national centre of excellence for football will soon be set up in the country. The project, estimated to cost upward of Rs one billion, is likely to be supported by the world governing body FIFA.
The location for the proposed centre will be announced after the FIFA U 17 World Cup, being hosted in the country for the first time, is over. The work is expected to commence in 2018 and the centre could be ready in a year and half, he said.
“We have not shortlisted the location but it is in advanced stage. We are setting up a national training centre of excellence which will be the home of the Indian national team, junior and women’s team,” PTI quotes Patel as saying.
There will be permanent facility for everything from physical training to swimming rooms to classrooms to mental conditioning, he added.
“Hopefully, we will get FIFA supporting us in this initiative as much as we will reach out to private sponsors. It would have at least a couple of fields so that there is enough space. We want to host it in a place where there is more competitive sport available because you can’t be putting it in the backwaters. You won’t get teams to play competitive games,” he stated.
Patel also said that India has formally put in an official bid to host the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2019.
“We hope through conducting this tournament and with the FIFA executive committee in happening India (Kolkata, from October 26-28) we will be in a position to convince the FIFA of India’s ability, enthusiasm and commitment for hosting such games (U-20 World Cup). We certainly feel the time has come,” he said.
