In a bid to boost the upcoming I-League season, All India Football Federation (AIFF), on Monday, August 12, 2024, assured the elite clubs on quality broadcast production ‘upto 8 high-definition cameras’ and a club-centric optimised fixture, provided the participating clubs meet a minimum infrastructure mandate.
The important decision was taken during a constructive and a progressive interaction with the I-League clubs in a two-hour long meeting called by AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey in the capital. Eight of the 12 club owners/co-owners attended the meeting at the Football House, while four joined virtually.
Addressing the feedback received from the clubs, AIFF has assured to work with the stakeholders on proactive steps to help raise the I-League profile with renewed focus on its marketing and promotion, broadcast, fixture and refereeing. Moving ahead, as an immediate step, the AIFF has formed various task force groups with representatives from I-League clubs to work on each of these aspects, to collaborate and propose a way forward.
AIFF is keen to schedule the I-League games on prime time with an increased ‘upto 8 camera’ HD broadcast kit. The Federation has requested clubs to revert with updates on their home stadium infrastructure including commitment on pitch quality of international standard throughout the season, and their ability to install/upgrade 1800 lux floodlights – a minimum mandate for quality broadcast production.
It was decided that venues where home clubs are able to commit meeting the minimum mandated infrastructure, AIFF will allocate prime time broadcast schedule with increased camera kit. Such games will also be marked as marquee events in the fixtures for marketing purposes.
However, for venues which may not be able to meet the minimum requirements this season, AIFF will allocate a minimum of two to six camera kit, considering the availability of the infrastructure. For the 2023-24 fixtures, it has been decided that AIFF competition department in consultation with the club owners and the relevant task force, will present a best-scenario scheduling, geographically mapping clubs travelling and to optimise away games fixture in a way to reduce the clubs’ travel cost and time.
The I-League clubs, Federation and the Task Force is scheduled to meet on 26 August 2024 to review the reports, suggestions and to decide on next course of action.
Ranjit Bajaj, Director, Delhi FC: “It was a much awaited and welcome meeting for the I-League clubs today. The AIFF addressed our feedback point by point. All stakeholders are committed to working towards a singular objective of making the I-League a success. As I-League clubs, the onus is on us as well to take various responsibilities to achieve this. I thank president Kalyan Chaubey for his time and efforts, and I do hope that under his leadership we will turn a new chapter in Indian football.”
Aditya Barros Pereira, General Manager, Churchill Brothers, said, “I appreciate the time the president took for us and hopefully this meeting is fruitful. And him being our president, being a former football player, especially for a powerhouse state like Bengal, gives me hope. He understands the value of I-League clubs and knows the background of Indian football. So I’m looking forward to a positive outcome in the next meeting and a positive future for Indian football.”
Ashok Kumar, CEO, Gokulam Kerala FC: “It was an excellent meeting. We are all glad that the president is able to give so much of time for all I-League clubs, which is most welcome. I see a new beginning for the I-League clubs in this era.”
Krishna Kumar Tak, Chairman, Rajasthan United FC: “Today’s meeting was a fruitful one under the chairmanship of the AIFF president, who took a very positive approach towards all problems. I’m sure under his guidance, we will be able to take it forward. When the leader is strong, then we all become stronger. We have been energised by the meeting and are confident the problems we’re having will be solved with a positive outlook.”
Pradhyum Reddy, CEO, Dempo SC: “I think it’s a really good initiative that you can have an open discussion. I think it was long overdue. It’s just the first of many and it will help the I-League and Indian football grow in the right direction if we have regular dialogue between the concerned parties. It’s a great initiative by the president and I hope we have more fruitful discussions.”
Arshad Shawl, Director and Owner, Real Kashmir FC: “It was a progressive meeting where all the stakeholders came together to discuss the ongoing concerns and possible solutions for the I-League. The suggestions were well accepted and a path was laid out to streamline operations and challenges for the upcoming season.”
Fabio Ferreira, Technical Director, Sreenidi Deccan FC: “First, I thank president, Kalyan Chaubey for having this meeting, which is very important to bring all the stakeholders together to understand what are the different challenges that the clubs face and together how can we work to solve them and increase the overall value of the league, which ultimately increases the overall value of the clubs and also the Indian football ecosystem. Secondly, the discussions held were very fruitful. It brought the clubs together once again. We are stronger today than what we were yesterday. And it’s good to see that everyone is working towards increasing the quality of our product, which ultimately is the football match. And I’m sure that together in the new season, the I-League will once again be successful and better than what it was in the past.”
Robert Romawia Royte, Owner and president, Aizawl FC: “Today we had a very fruitful meeting under the chairmanship of the AIFF president. Participation from the elite clubs was also good. The proceedings dwelled on the points that we have been raising in the last few years and the issues were taken up point by point. I do hope that this meeting will prove important in the development of football in general and the I-League in particular.”
Shamsher Singh, Namdhari FC: “We had a productive meeting today with all the I-League clubs and AIFF officials. We met and understood the viewpoints of each other. So we can work on the sustainability of the I-League, which is the traditional Indian league. So, we have formed committees who will be working on different issues. By the next 15 days we will be meeting again to resolve all these subjects and we will come up with all the solutions which we discussed today.”
Prithiijit Das, president, Inter Kashi: “We are very thankful to the president for inviting us to this meeting. It’s very reassuring to hear his commitment to the I-League. We had very good discussions.”
Kishore S Reddy, Co-founder and CEO, Sporting Club Bengaluru: “I think today’s meeting is a welcoming move by the AIFF. We hope for a lot of positives from it. That’s what all the stakeholders want. I think we’re the fastest growing club in India. A lot of credit goes to the Karnataka State Football Association.”
Habamutlang Lyngdoh, General Manager, Shillong Lajong FC: “We’d like to thank the president and Acting Secretary General for taking their time out to meet the I-League clubs and hearing out their concerns. It was probably our most productive meeting since COVID. We look forward now and hope the next I-League season will be even better.”
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