Mumbai: The Indian Super League (ISL) entered into a strategic partnership with the English Premier League (EPL) last year. The move was initiated so that ISL teams could strive to bring best practices to the subcontinent from the world’s most popular and successful league.
The program allows the ISL to use EPL’s expertise to nurture and develop high quality football competition. According to Tim Vine, a senior EPL official, ISL has the potential to match the success and popularity of the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL).
“Everyone knows that India is at the start of a journey, with the beginning of the ISL as a new league. I think that we have the benefit in the UK of having a professional league since 1888. It’s close to a hundred and thirty years of experience. We have seen the success of the IPL overseas. I believe ISL can go down the similar route,” Vine said on the sidelines of ‘The Football Movement’, an event organised by UK Trade and Investment held here on Monday.
Vine, who is the Director for International Relations for the EPL, also believes that relations between the two leagues have matured over the past year.
“We have a mutual agreement with the Indian Super League. That is all about sharing ideas and experience of our own leagues. Earlier this year, we had a visit from all of the Indian Super League clubs, the administrative staff and Star Sports, who came to the UK. They spent some time behind the scenes at the Premier League learning more about how the clubs operate on the ground.
“I think there’s an opportunity for us and our clubs to learn from the ISL. Operating in a country like India is something that’s entirely different for the UK. To learn from the people who have worked in sports and broadcasting in this country is a major factor for our development,” he said.
When asked about the driving force behind all the initiatives that the EPL has been taking in order to promote and develop the game of football in India, the EPL official highlighted the large fan base that India has on offer, along with emphasising on the need to develop football at the grass-roots level.
“We think that there are 250 million football fans in India, out of which 90 million are Premier League fans. So that is a huge fan-base. We run this program called Premier Skills, in collaboration with the British Council. We are working with the Goa and Kerala Football Associations and are training their coaches and referees,” he added.
On being quizzed if any Premier League stars or veterans would be gracing the under-17 FIFA World Cup scheduled to take place in the country in 2017, Vine said, “We haven’t started discussions with any of the organisers about who they might be, but I’m sure that clubs will be interested in getting involved. FIFA have a huge number of ambassadors and former players who are a part of their network. I’m sure that they will be looking to come out here. This is an exciting opportunity for India and we’re all eager to see how successful it is.”
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