Indian Super League Announces New Franchise Owners in Its Journey to Revolutionize Indian Football - Seite 3

Given the burgeoning interest in football and the country's long association with the sport, the Indian Super League desires to position itself among the best footballing competitions across the world, as an entertaining and high quality league that would engage hundreds of millions of fans and drive improvement in playing standards.

"Inspiring our nation to excel is a priority and comes naturally to us at Star India. With our expertise in marketing and production of sports content, our task is cut out to etch football in the sports culture of India," said Uday Shankar, CEO of Star India. "The nation has been awaiting its second sport for far too long. And we're delighted to collaborate with esteemed partners in the business and sports world to make that happen!"

The Indian Super League represents transformational progress for Indian football, progress that will be good for players, fans and the League Partners. It's an opportunity to be part of one of the most exciting new properties in football anywhere in the world and Indian Federation, the AIFF has extended all its help for the success of the League.

Praful Patel, President, AIFF, said, "No period in India's long and proud history in football is more exciting than today. This day will go down in memory as a special day for Indian football as eight high profile celebrities and corporates are being introduced into the sport through Indian Super League. With IMG Reliance and Star providing the perfect foundation, the League has become an unstoppable force which will change Indian football. I hope the grassroots obligations of the franchises give a huge push to the development of the game. Along with the world class infrastructure that is being created for the Under 17 FIFA World Cup, and AIFF's expression of interest to host 2015 and 2016 FIFA Club World Cup, Indian football is definitely turning a new leaf in its history."

Kushal Das, General Secretary, AIFF is also a firm believer of the fact that Indian football needs an innovative approach to amass popularity. "I have always believed Indian football needs an innovative and experimental format like Indian Super League to bring the fans back to the stadiums. Today, with the kind of owners and organizers that we have behind Indian Super League, we have the perfect recipe to a successful professional tournament. I wish the Indian Super League all the best."

With the onset of Indian Super League, India seeks to write a new chapter in creating the footballing culture with renewed energy, investment and commitment by the stakeholders -- IMG Worldwide, Reliance Industries, Star India and the Indian Federation, AIFF.

Contact:
Jim Gallagher
IMG
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