New Delhi : The prestigious Subroto Cup International Football Tournament will kick off its 64th edition with 106 teams, vying for top honours across three categories, Junior Boys and Girls and Sub-Junior
The tournament is scheduled to be hosted across Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru from August 19 to September 25.
An official announcement to this effect was made in a press event at the Akash Officer’s Mess here in the national capital on Tuesday, in the presence of Air Marshal S Sivakumar VSM, Air Officer-in-Charge Administration & Vice Chairman, Subroto Mukherjee Sports Education Society (SMSES), who graced the occasion as chief guest. Indian footballer Dalima Chhibber also graced the occasion as the Guest of Honour.
The Subroto Cup, hosted by Subroto Mukerjee Sports Education Society under the aegis of Air Force Sports Control Board, was first held in 1960 and was named after Air Marshal Subroto Mukerjee, who conceived the idea in order to promote sport at the grassroots level.
The tournament will begin on August 19 with the Junior Girls (Under 17) category in Delhi-NCR. The Sub-Junior Boys (Under 15) category matches will be hosted in Bengaluru from September 2, while the final phase of the tournament, the Junior Boys (Under 17) category, kicks off on September 16 in Delhi-NCR.
Addressing the gathering on the occasion, Air Marshal S Sivakumar VSM, Air Officer-in-Charge Administration & Vice Chairman SMSES, said, “The Indian Air Force and SMSES have been committed to make the tournament bigger and better every year, providing a platform for young kids to take the next step in their career. I congratulate all the teams who have qualified for the tournament and wish them all the very best. May they play the game in the true spirit of sportsmanship.”
Indian footballer Dalima Chhibber said, “It is an honour to be back at the Subroto Cup, where my journey started in 2011 with the first-ever Women’s Under-17 tournament. This tournament gives wings to young boys and girls who have dreams at the school level and provides them with the confidence and opportunity to showcase their talent and get selected. Many players from here have joined national teams, and I hope we can all support this tournament for the betterment of the sport in the country.”
Seven players shall be selected from the scouting round for advanced football training in Germany, as part of the Indian Tiger & Tigresses campaign.
Besides the hallowed Ambedkar Stadium and the Tejas Football Ground, Subroto Park Football Ground and Pinto Park Football Ground in New Delhi will be the venues in the Delhi-NCR region. In Bengaluru, the matches will be played at the Air Force School, Jalahalli, the Air Force School, Yelahanka and the HQ Training Command Football Ground.
The total of 106 teams participating across the three categories will represent States and Union Territories (UTs) and the different educational bodies of the country, along with teams from four foreign countries. A total of over 200 football matches are scheduled to be played across all three categories.
An age determination test will be conducted for the Sub-Junior Boys category at Bengaluru to ensure fair play for all the teams participating.
TG English School, Bishnupur, Manipur are the defending champions of the Junior Boys category, while Mother International School, Ranchi, Jharkhand defended their title in the Junior Girls category last year.
Nongiri Presbyterian Secondary School, Meghalaya, clinched the Sub-Junior Boys title at Bengaluru in the previous edition.
