Sports For All (SPA), a grassroots sports competition platform, has tied up with the TV9 Network to hunt the young football talents in the country.
SFA will collaborate with the ‘Indian Tigers and Tigresses’ campaign which is a talent hunt aimed at Under-14 boys and girls.
At the SFA Championships currently on in Hyderabad, the biggest of its kind in the country, young footballers will be able to register for the ‘Indian Tigers and Tigresses’ talent hunt at the kiosk available.
The SFA Championships Hyderabad features more than 23000 students from nearly 400 schools. The 2024 edition began on October 15 and will conclude on October 28. The SFA Championships are part of a larger initiative by Sports For All (SFA) to professionalise, organise, and monetise grassroots sports in India. The aim is to build a strong sports culture and inspire youth to engage in sports through joyful and competitive experiences. The 2024-25 Championships will take place across 10 cities in India featuring 150,000 students from over 7000 schools playing 31 sports.
The SFA Championships have grown consistently since their inception and continue to add new cities and participants each year. This partnership underlines the reach and impact of the SFA Championships at a grassroots and participatory sports level.
The ‘Indian Tigers and Tigresses’ campaign was launched in April 2024 through a partnership between TV9 and leading footballing organisations such as DFB (Deutscher Fußball-Bund), DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga (Bundesliga), City of Gmunden, BVB Borussia Dortmund, the International Football Institute in Germany and Austria’s Riespo.
Darpan Kumar, Chief Revenue Officer of SFA said, “We are excited to partner with TV9 and the ‘Indian Tigers and Tigresses’ at the SFA Championships in Hyderabad. This collaboration strengthens our mission to inspire young athletes and promote grassroots sports excellence across India, fostering the next generation of sporting talent.”
Commenting on the ‘Indian Tigers and Tigresses’ initiative, Barun Das, MD and CEO of TV9 Network said, “The News9 ‘Indian Tigers & Tigresses’ initiative is a matter of great pride for us, as it takes football in a whole new direction in India. We envision a future where Indian footballers are given opportunities to be in the global spotlight akin to any of the major footballing nations in the West. This is also one of the pillars that need to be leveraged in India’s ascendancy in the global head table. That starts by giving these players a level playing field, by making football a serious career option for these talented youngsters, and training them to be world-class players from a young age. This is not just about finding out what you are good at – it is about opening doors and lighting up thousands of dreams.”
