New Delhi: Plans for the eagerly anticipated Indian Super League (ISL) and the 2017 U-17 FIFA World Cup will be officially presented to the global football industry at the Soccerex Global Convention, held in Manchester between September 6-10.
The move comes after the confirmation of the attendance of a senior Indian delegation was made. The session will begin with Kushal Das, General Secretary of the All India Football Federation, delivering a standalone keynote speech, outlining the explosion of the game in India.
The panel, moderated by Sukhvinder Singh, will see I-League CEO Sunando Dhar, STAR Sports India president Nitin Kukreja, Delhi Dynamos Owner Sameer Manchanda, Liverpool FC International Football Academy - DSK Shivajians President Shirish Kulkarni and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry Director Rajpal Singh presenting the latest developments behind the two projects and the multiple business opportunities associated within Indian football, culminating in the release of the combined FICCI-AIFF-Libero Sports knowledge report.
Managed by IMG-Reliance, the ISL has attracted investment from India's biggest companies and celebrities, with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, DEN Network, PVP, John Abraham and Ranbir Kapoor becoming team owners, as well as partnerships with leading European giants such as Atletico Madrid and AFC Fiorentina.
The 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup will be the first global football tournament hosted by 'football's sleeping giant' and will play a crucial role in developing youth football in India.
With FIFA earmarking a potential 38 million US Dollars investment for the tournament, there are numerous business opportunities for suppliers from across the football spectrum, to engage with the key decision makers from the AIFF to learn about the multiple commercial opportunities the tournament will create.
Das and the Indian delegation join a growing list of international industry leaders who will be speaking at the Global Convention including FIFA President Joseph Blatter, four-time Olympic gold medallist Michael Johnson, MLS Commissioner Don Garber, FIFA Vice-President Jim Boyce, La Liga President Javier Tebas, RFU CEO Ian Ritchie and England and Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton.
The convention kicks off with the two-day Football Festival on September 6.
