BENGALURU: The five-time National champions Dempo Sports Club will be hoping to bring back the glory days and open their campaign with a victory over defending champions Bengaluru Football Club in their I-League encounter, at Kanteerva Stadium, Bengaluru. The kick-off is at 7 p.m.
Ahead of the crunch tie, the I-League trophy was unveiled, here, on Friday in the presence of Bengaluru FC skipper Sunil Chhetri, captain of Dempo SC Clifford Miranda, AIFF general secretary Kushal Das, Chairman of Hero I-League AR Khaleel and I-League CEO Sunando Dhar.
It was announced that the ‘Hero of the I-League’ will receive prize money of Rs 2 lakhs. The ‘Hero Goalkeeper of the I-League’ and the ‘Hero Defender of the I-League’ will be awarded Rs. 25,000 each and, the ‘Hero of the Match’ will get a sum of Rs. 10,000 as prize money.
The battle for the coveted ‘Hero I-League Trophy’ will be between Bengaluru FC, Bharat FC, Dempo SC, East Bengal Club, Mohun Bagan, Mumbai FC, Pune FC, Royal Wahingdoh, Salgaocar FC, Shillong Lajong FC and Sporting Clube de Goa.
Pawan Munjal, Vice Chairman, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Hero MotoCorp Ltd, said, “Football is not just the World’s most popular game, it has today become a phenomenon sweeping across continents. Like every other part of the world, India is also in the grip of this magic called football as millions of youngsters across the country are taking to the game with enthusiasm. Having been the title sponsor of the Hero Indian Super League and the Federation Cup, we are now taking the next logical step of becoming the title sponsor of the much followed I-League. With this, Hero MotoCorp has now become the pioneer catalysts in popularising the game of football in the country. I am sure this will also bring in much-needed professionalism into the game and promote it at the grass roots level to help identify and nurture local talent.”
Kushal Das commented “We are extremely happy to have Hero Motocorp Ltd as the title sponsor of the I-League. I believe this will go a long way in creating the necessary marketing buzz for the I-League which is a very important tournament for identifying national team players as well as participation in AFC Club competitions.”
“I am grateful to our commercial partners, Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), for roping in a sponsor of the stature of Hero Motocorp Ltd, who are known for their ability to take sporting properties to new levels by their innovations and marketing acumen.”
From 2007, The National Football League has been named as the I-League and since then they have had seven editions. The current one will be the eighth edition of the I-League, with 11 teams on board.
Goan heavyweights Dempo SC have won the title five times. The defending champions Bengaluru FC have created history by laying their nascent hands on the trophy in their very first year and season.
