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| AIFF President Mr. Praful Patel |
Besides, AIFF General Secretary Mr. Kushal Das; Vice Presidents Mr. Subrata Dutta, Mr. Shrinivas Dempo, Mr. Larsing Ming; Treasurer Mr. ZA Thakur; Ms. Sara Pilot; and all other Members except Mr. Subhash Chopra, Mr. KMI Mather and Mr. Jesiah Villavarayar attended the Meeting.
National Coach Stephen Constantine, AIFF Technical Director Mr. Scott O’Donnell, Mr. Abhishek Yadav, Director, Scouting, AIFF; Mr. Javier Ceppi, Tournament Director, 2017 U-17 World Cup, were also present on the occasion.
Mr. Chirag Tanna represented FSDL in attended the Meeting. Mr. Patel on behalf of the Committee congratulated the newly elected FIFA President Mr. Gianni Infantino and assured him of full-fledged support of AIFF.
“Mr. Infantino is a dynamic and energetic young man and I had a chat with him in Zurich. We also seek FIFA’s continous support for development of Indian Football,” Mr. Patel said.
Mr. Patel also congratulated the Indian National Team for their success in the SAFF Suzuki Cup and the Indian Women’s Team for winning the Gold Medal in the SAG.
“The Team Coached by Stephen Constantine and Captain Sunil Chhetri showed exemplary character during the Tournament. I would also like to congratulate all the Players and the support staff for their contribution.”
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| Mr. Kushal Das, General Secretary, AIFF |
Realising the potential of Women’s Football in India, Mr. Patel has called for a meeting on March 30, 2016 to discuss the format and path for Women’s Development.
As per the request of the Indian Football Association, the Committee granted an advance sum of Rs. 20 lakhs for refurbishing of the Barasat Stadium which is presently the Home ground for both Mohun Bagan and East Bengal in the Hero I-League. The sum paid as an advance is to be repaid back by the IFA within 365 days.
It was also decided that the Sub junior final round will be held in Delhi from April 10 onwards and the Committee was also given a detailed presentation on the forthcoming format of the Coca Cola Cup (U-16 Championsips).
Mr. Sunando Dhar, CEO, I-League educated the Committee about the substantial rise in the attendance in I-League matches in the current edition. “In the second division League, Imphal and Kashmir have been drawing an average of 18000 spectators per match,” he informed.
Mr. Abhishek Yadav also apprised the Committee about the scouting details from the exhibition matches which the U-17 World Cup Team played in various venues. “We selected eight new faces from our four scouting matches out of which two travelled with the Team to the exposure Tour to South Africa.”
Meanwhile, the Committee ratified the proposal to have Mr. Yadav as a Member of the Technical Committee.
It was unanimously decided that the Final of the Federation Cup will be held in Srinagar on May 24, 2016. Keen on using the Grassroots Programme for talent identification, Mr. O’Donell stressed on closing the gap between the ages of 12-17. A proposal was laid to have an U-13 I-League and AIFF will be working in close association with the appointed Technical Officers of the State Associations for developing and laying the process for the same.
Furthermore, Mr. Javier Ceppi educated the Committee about developments in the buildup for the successful hosting of the FIFA 2017 U-17 World Cup in 2017. A three-member Committee was also set up to decide on the proposed affiliation process for Lakshadweep.
