Mumbai will get a Centre of Excellence. FIFA has decided to set it up as a part of its Goal project. The academies will be established in Bangalore, Delhi (NCR) and Kolkata as well.
The decision was taken during a recent meeting involving a couple of top FIFA officials and All India Football Federation (AIFF) general secretary Kushal Das. “This is an attempt to re-invigorate football in these cities. We hope to get these academies running by March 2012,” Das said after the meeting. FIFA technical director Jean-Michel Benezet and Thierry Regenass, who is the director of FIFA’s Member Associations and Development Vision, were present at the meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday.
The project will be partially funded by FIFA, but they will provide complete technical expertise, Das added.
FIFA had earlier granted artificial turf and $2 million for uplifting the facilities at the Cooperage stadium. And if things go as per plan, the city is in for more good news as it is learnt that even Manchester United are planning to launch a football academy.
The academy will target under 14 kids. The residential academy will house 30 players. The facilities, Das said, will include a school, gymnasium, swimming pool, hostel and a ground. AIFF has set up a similar academy in Kolkata, which the FIFA had appreciated. However, the challenge for them will be to find such a place in Mumbai, where the infrastructure for football is zero and the space constraints have hampered the growth. “We have that kind of a facility in Mumbai. It will be a challenge but not impossible,” Das said.
The onus to spot the location lies with the Western India Football Association (WIFA). Its CEO, Henry Menezes is confident that the academy will take the desired shape. “I don’t think identifying the location should be a problem. One thing is sure that the academy will benefit the city in a huge way,” Menezes said.
