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Tag: AIFF

  • AIFF assigns national football tournament telecast rights to Shrachi Sports for 2024-25

    AIFF assigns national football tournament telecast rights to Shrachi Sports for 2024-25

    MUMBAI: Football fans are going to get more soccer than they could have ever imagined. Close on the heels of JioStar signing up with the Premier League as well as presenting the Indian Super league, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) signed a commercial rights agreement for its premier competitions (I-League, I-League 2, IWL, senior national football championship for the Santosh Trophy and senior women’s national football championship for the Rajmata Jijabai Trophy) with Shrachi Sports Endeavour Pvt Ltd for producing and broadcasting 338 matches in the 2024-25 season on 2 December 2024.
     

    All India Football Federation assigns rights

    The senior men and women club leagues and national championship matches will be streamed on the SSEN app (owned by Shrachi Sports Endeavor), and 110 of the 132 I-League matches will be broadcast live on the Sony Sports Network.

    “This significant partnership will help Indian football to get necessary exposure,” said AIFF secretary general Anilkumar.

    Shrachi Sports managing director Rahul Todi said that the agreement will provide “a platform for men and women players to showcase their talents to national and international audiences with high quality HD content. With this partnership, Shrachi shows its commitment towards being part of India’s growing sports ecosystem.”

    The SSN streaming platform is available to football fans at three  price points: Rs 20 for a single match as a pay per view option, Rs 100 for an entire tournament and Rs 600 as an annual subscription which gives access to all the matches for all the tournaments. 
     

  • Eurosport acquires broadcast rights for international football friendlies of India

    Eurosport acquires broadcast rights for international football friendlies of India

    Mumbai: Warner Bros. Discovery’s premium sports brand Eurosport India has acquired broadcast rights for the upcoming international football friendly match of the Indian national men’s football team against Singapore and Vietnam.

    The matches are scheduled for 24 September (vs Singapore) and 27 September (vs Vietnam) at 5:30 p.m. IST at the Thống Nhất Stadium in Vietnam.

    The All-India Football Federation (AIFF) awarded Eurosport India the broadcasting rights. The Indian men’s football team, also known as the Blue Tigers, will play for the first time since the 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers in Kolkata in June 2022. These friendlies have been planned in anticipation of the team’s participation in the upcoming Asian Cup next year.

    India, led by talismanic Captain Sunil Chhetri, will face the host nation, Vietnam, for the first time in over a decade, with the goal of maintaining their winning record, while their next game against Singapore will be played on 27 September , 2022.

    Warner Bros. Discovery Sports has been bringing top-level action from the world of international football leagues to India via the MLS and the Eredivisie (Dutch league).

    In addition, through the AFC Women’s Asian Cup earlier this year, FIFA friendlies, the SAFF Championship, and the inaugural Hero Futsal Club Championship, they have played an important role in bringing Indian football to the fans here.

    Both matches will be broadcast live on the Eurosport and Eurosport HD channels in India, as well as on the discovery+ app.

  • Hero IWL 2021-22 to have live premiere on Eurosport India

    Hero IWL 2021-22 to have live premiere on Eurosport India

    Mumbai: The Hero Indian Women’s League (Hero IWL), an AIFF flagship property and the top division of women’s professional football club competition in India will have live and exclusive broadcast on Eurosport India. The fifth edition of the premier women’s league of Indian football will see 12 teams vie for the top honours across three grounds in Odisha (Kalinga Stadium, Capital Stadium and Battalion Stadium).

    The Hero IWL is back after two years with the fifth edition set to take place from 15 April to 26 May.

    A total of 66 matches will be played throughout the season with every team playing each other once; Eurosport will be airing 30 matches. The team with the most points in the league table at the end of the season will be crowned champions of the Hero IWL 2021-22.

    “It’s great to have Eurosport on board to telecast the Hero Indian Women’s League 2022 and help us move forward together,” IFF CEO leagues and development Sunando Dhar averred. “Since the format of the games this season has changed and more number of games are added, I am sure, the fans will also be able to enjoy the matches from their drawing room.”

    Eurosport India is committed to bringing Indian football to fans across the country. Sports fans have been able to cheer for their national team in friendly internationals against Oman and UAE as well as during the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship matches over the past year. Eurosport also broadcast the inaugural season of the Hero Futsal Club Championship and the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, which was held in India.

    Hero IWL 2021-22 campaign kicked off on Friday, with simultaneous kickoffs at 4p.m IST, as PIFA Sports (Colaba) FC take on Kickstart FC Karnataka at the Capital Ground, while SSB Women FC faces Hans Women FC at the 7th Battalion Ground, in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

  • PUMA announces Sunil Chhetri as brand ambassador

    PUMA announces Sunil Chhetri as brand ambassador

    MUMBAI: Global sports brand PUMA has announced Sunil Chhetri, captain of the Indian National Football team and Bengaluru FC signed with the brand. A captain, leader and a legend, he is the second-highest after Cristiano Ronaldo on the list of active international scorers in world football. Signing a three-year deal with PUMA, he now joins the brand’s roster of global players like Antoine Griezmann, Romelu Lukaku, Luis Suárez and Sergio Aguero among others.

    One of the greatest footballers India has ever seen, Sunil Chhetri plays as a striker for the national team and Bengaluru FC. A hero for both the club and the country, he is the most-capped player and also the all-time top goal scorer for the Indian team. Named AIFF Player of the Year six times, he was also conferred with the Arjuna award in 2011 and Padma Shri in 2019 among several other coveted sports honors.  

    “I am excited to join the PUMA family. Over the years, I have closely witnessed and experienced the brand’s football heritage. Now signing with them as a PUMA player is a very natural progression for me,” said Sunil Chhetri. “We share a common goal to accelerate the growth of football in the country. I appreciate their commitment to the sporting ecosystem and look forward to creating a new chapter for Indian football,” he added.

    This partnership extends PUMA’s legacy with Indian football. From its longstanding association with Bengaluru Football Club since 2014 to individual agreements with players like Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Dheeraj Singh Moirangthe, Nishu Kumar and Rahul Bheke, the brand aims to further its commitment to the sport and talent.

    PUMA India managing director Abhishek Ganguly said, “Sunil Chhetri is synonymous with football. A living legend and an inspiration for the youth, he has made a huge impact to grow the sport and its following in India. His passion is very much in line with PUMA’s vision. Together, we are invested in growing the culture of football, inspiring and achieving new levels in the game.”

    PUMA has teamed up with the country’s best athletes to support their never-ending effort to become faster, stronger, and better every single day. From Indian Cricket Captain, Virat Kohli and boxing champion MC Mary Kom to ace sprinter Dutee Chand, the brand is fueling the growing passion for sports across disciplines.

  • Lex Sportel acquires broadcast rights of Hero I-League

    Lex Sportel acquires broadcast rights of Hero I-League

    MUMBAI:  India is all set for another exciting season of Hero I-League. The league has won many hearts for over a decade and has been at the forefront of Indian football creating heroes. These heroes who have become household names will now feature on a whole new platform. Taking this legacy forward, Lex Sportel Vision Pvt.Ltd and Hero I-League has joined hands for the broadcast of the 2019-2 0season of Hero I-League which will kick-off on 30 November 2019.

    The partnership also marks the first major venture for Lex Sportel into Indian football. To the advantage of the football fans in India all the matches will be broadcast LIVE on DSPORT in primetime slots which will be 2:00 PM, 5:00 PM and 7:00 PM IST.

    “It has always been our endeavour to provide the best to all our fans. Keeping the requests of the clubs in mind, and with the support of our marketing partners FSDL, we are happy to get Lex Sportel on board as the broadcast partners for the 13thedition of the Hero I-League. I am confident the fans will have access to the best of Indian Football across multiple platforms. I wish all the clubs good luck,” AIFF general secretary Kushal Das in his statement said.

    11 teams from across the country will clash swords over the period of the League to decide who will be crowned the ‘Champions of India’ and take home the coveted trophy.

     “The Hero I – League isn’t just a league. It’s an emotion. It has few of the most passionate fan bases not just in the country and in the entire world. We are excited and proud to be a part of this journey,” Lex Sportel MD and CEO R.C. Venkateish commented on the acquisition.

    The first match of the season will feature Aizawl FC who will lock horns with the Mariners – MohunBagan at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium, Aizawl on Nov 30th at 2:00PM IST.

  • Football viewership up 7% in 2018 from 5% in 2016

    Football viewership up 7% in 2018 from 5% in 2016

    MUMBAI: After Star India took the initiative to boost a variety of sports in India, other broadcasters also picked up their shovels to dig deep. It has made a sincere effort in the turnaround of Indian football with participation (to build culture), incentivisation (to build careers), and commercialisation model (to drive in viewership) which are the three building blocks to development.

    Delivering a keynote address at the Star Sports India Football Forum 2018, an initiative by SportzPower, Star Sports head marketing Rajiv Mathrani said, “The best way to predict the future is to dream it. India is not too far from playing FIFA World Cup with the increase in the number of teams, the ranking in which we are and the young talent which is coming along.”

    All India Football Federation (AIFF) general secretary Kushal Das said that AIFF will very soon launch a school-level project along with the game’s world governing body FIFA.

    According to BARC data, FIFA WC final garnered 16 million impressions in India and stood at fourth place. China (56 million impressions), Germany (21 million impressions) and France (19 million impressions) were ahead of India.  

    BARC India head- partnerships Elbert D’Silva said, “If we look at football, in 2016 the sport garnered 2 billion impressions and now till October 2018, it has garnered 3 billion impressions.”

    Football viewership has gone up from five per cent in 2016 to seven per cent in 2018.

    As of now, there are 836 million viewers who watch television across India. Out of these 836 million viewers who have access to television, 791 million or 95 per cent have consumed some sporting content across multiple TV channels. If we look at football numbers, 498 million people have sampled some content related to football in the country.

    According to D’Silva, the movement of Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid to Juventus has affected the viewership. El Clasico’s impressions dropped down from 4 million to 2 million, but on the other hand, Serie A viewership doubled.

    The sports revenue in India has increased from $0.9 billion in 2016 to $1.1 billion in 2017, whereas North America has seen a spike in the revenue from $15.7 billion in 2016 to $16.2 billion in 2017.

    SPN India EVP and head digital business Uday Sodhi thinks that this year’s FIFA WC has really made football mainstream in India. “The only difference for OTT is that this is a newer medium, the forms of monetisation and the way you monetise will take more time to get established,” Sodhi added.

    ESP Properties business head Vinit Karnik said, “With multiple services coming in one set top box, the day is not too far when the gap between traditional TV and OTT will change.”

    SonyLiv has a large sports footprint, football is growing 150 per cent y-o-y, basketball is growing 3-5X. Sodhi believes that India will have a freemium business going forward to a large extent. There will be a significant amount of advertising play and subscription will then be able to create a niche for itself for premium content.

  • Star Sports to air Nat f’ball till Mar ’18, Hotstar to live-stream international fixtures

    MUMBAI: Star Sports is now prepared to telecast India team’s games starting with a friendly match against Nepal on 6 June.

    All India Football Federation (AIFF) and Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), its marketing partners, have shared the national football team’s yearly fixtures. The India National Team will play 15 competitive games including eight matches in India (till March 2018). All the international fixtures will be streamed live on Star Sports and Hotstar, its digital platform.

    The Star Network, having aired successfully many a international footballing events, is now set to regale India’s sports fans with a world-class live television experience of its national team. A Star India Spokesperson said that it was a huge step forward. Telecasting the national fixtures is a significant addition to its line-up of football properties and validates its network as the top destination for football fans.

    The National team already played and won two games against Cambodia and AFC Asian Cup qualifier against Myanmar. AIFF recently launched the annual multi-country Champions Cup to be played in August ’17 by four countries including India. The competition will be held from August 18-27, 2017 where the team will play for games provided they reach the finals.

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  • Bank of Baroda joins hands with AIFF for U-17 World Cup

    Bank of Baroda joins hands with AIFF for U-17 World Cup

    MUMBAI: Bank of Baroda became the first Indian company to sign up as a national supporter for the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017, the first FIFA Event to be hosted in the Subcontinent ever in the history of the game. As the excitement continues to grow for the tournament next year, India is bracing to ties its laces and have a good run in the World Cup.

    All India Football Federation president and chairman of the local organising committee Praful Patel said, “As an organisation that has a long affiliation with sports, Bank of Baroda shares our enthusiasm to develop and strengthen football in India. As president of the AIFF, I am committed to ensuring that football development in India gets the support it deserves.”

    Tournament Director Javier Ceppi was not surprised by the keen interest in the National Supporter slots. “This is a landmark event in Indian sport. It is the first ever FIFA tournament to be hosted by India, with the country taking part in it. This is a unique opportunity to be partners in making football history in this country. Joining in at this early stage, Bank of Baroda will have the added advantage of ten months of exposure with the FIFA U-17 World Cup.”

    Increasing awareness and participation in sports has become a key focus for the leading state-owned bank which positions itself as India’s International Bank.

    “We are highly motivated to promote football across the country and to inspire a new generation of youngsters. Partnering with the FIFA U-17 World Cup India, 2017 was a logical choice for us, as there is no bigger sporting event that the country will see next year. It is truly an Indian crusade to make sure that this tournament succeeds and engages our complete population. We are sure that our strong banking network across the nation will help to make that happen and we are excited about becoming the first National Supporter for the Event,” said Bank of Baroda general manager (marketing, corporate communications & WMS) Rakesh Kumar Bhatia.

    With the signature of the agreement, Bank of Baroda has thus become the first of the six National Supporters that the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 can have. The Tournament will be held from October 6th to 28th, 2017.

  • Bank of Baroda joins hands with AIFF for U-17 World Cup

    Bank of Baroda joins hands with AIFF for U-17 World Cup

    MUMBAI: Bank of Baroda became the first Indian company to sign up as a national supporter for the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017, the first FIFA Event to be hosted in the Subcontinent ever in the history of the game. As the excitement continues to grow for the tournament next year, India is bracing to ties its laces and have a good run in the World Cup.

    All India Football Federation president and chairman of the local organising committee Praful Patel said, “As an organisation that has a long affiliation with sports, Bank of Baroda shares our enthusiasm to develop and strengthen football in India. As president of the AIFF, I am committed to ensuring that football development in India gets the support it deserves.”

    Tournament Director Javier Ceppi was not surprised by the keen interest in the National Supporter slots. “This is a landmark event in Indian sport. It is the first ever FIFA tournament to be hosted by India, with the country taking part in it. This is a unique opportunity to be partners in making football history in this country. Joining in at this early stage, Bank of Baroda will have the added advantage of ten months of exposure with the FIFA U-17 World Cup.”

    Increasing awareness and participation in sports has become a key focus for the leading state-owned bank which positions itself as India’s International Bank.

    “We are highly motivated to promote football across the country and to inspire a new generation of youngsters. Partnering with the FIFA U-17 World Cup India, 2017 was a logical choice for us, as there is no bigger sporting event that the country will see next year. It is truly an Indian crusade to make sure that this tournament succeeds and engages our complete population. We are sure that our strong banking network across the nation will help to make that happen and we are excited about becoming the first National Supporter for the Event,” said Bank of Baroda general manager (marketing, corporate communications & WMS) Rakesh Kumar Bhatia.

    With the signature of the agreement, Bank of Baroda has thus become the first of the six National Supporters that the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 can have. The Tournament will be held from October 6th to 28th, 2017.

  • Ten Network to telecast I-League ’17 from 7 Jan

    Ten Network to telecast I-League ’17 from 7 Jan

    MUMBAI: With the U-17 World Cup coming up next year, both ISL and the I-League would be the major sporting platforms to engage audience with the game. With the third season of Hero Indian Super League already under way, and being widely followed, it will be interesting to see how the next season of the I- League pans out.

    The 10th season of I-League starts on the 7 January, 2017. The premier football league in the country has undergone a few changes since the advent of the Indian Super League. With talks of a merger with ISL going on since a few months now, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has said that this might be the last year of the I-League.

    Bengaluru FC, the team which recently reached the finals of the AFC Cup, are the defending champions of the I-League. With Salgaocar FC and Sporting Clube de Goa pulling out of the mix, the AIFF had called for entries to new clubs into the top-tier directly via bids. In 2013, Bengaluru FC and Mumbai Tigers got their direct entries into the I-League, and it has been a terrific journey for the Blues since.

    Meanwhile, two new teams, Minerva Punjab FC and Chennai City FC, had their bids approved and are all set to be a part of the league commencing 7 January. This comes as a welcome news as Punjab, as a state, will make its debut into the game this season.

    Ten Network will be telecasting the I-league in India. Joining hands with the AIFF and IMG- Reliance, the Network — owned by Sony Pictures Network, will be telecasting 75 matches in each season. With the ISL bringing new excitement to the game in the country, the I-League would like to tap into new audience for the next season.