ITV

Tag: VIVO Pro Kabaddi

  • vivo Pro Kabaddi set to offer INR 8 crore in prize money for Season 7

    vivo Pro Kabaddi set to offer INR 8 crore in prize money for Season 7

    Mumbai:  The ‘Toughest Week’ of vivo Pro Kabaddi League Season 7 is all set to treat fans with exciting matches at EKA Arena by TransStadia, Ahmedabad. vivo Pro Kabaddi announces a consolidated prize money of INR 8 crore for the seventh edition.

    vivo Pro Kabaddi Season 7 offers a consolidated prize money that is at par with prominent leagues with teams and players competing for glory and an attractive prize pool. All the teams qualifying for the Playoffs are assured of some prize money, with the champions to bag INR 3 crore. The runners-up will be handed INR 1.8 crore, third and fourth placed teams will win INR 90 lakh each and the fifth and sixth position teams will win INR 45 lakh each. The remainder of the prize money pool will be towards various individual awards.

    The top 6 teams to clash in the ‘Toughest Week’ are Dabang Delhi K.C., Bengal Warriors, Haryana Steelers, UP Yoddha, U Mumba and Bengaluru Bulls.

    Format of the Playoffs leading to the ‘Toughest Panga of the Year’ on 19th October 2019 is as follows:

    Date

    Stage

    Fixture

    14th October

    Eliminator 1

    Rank 3 v Rank 6

    14th October

    Eliminator 2

    Rank 4 v Rank 5

    16th October

    Semi-final 1

    Rank 1 v Winner of Eliminator 1

    16th October

    Semi-final 2

    Rank 2 v Winner of Eliminator 2

    19th October

    Final

    Winner of Semi- final 1 v Winner of Semi-final 2

    Link to the format for the playoffs: Format for Playoffs

    Here is the complete breakdown of this season’s prize money for the Top 6 teams:

    Category

    INR (Cr)

    Winners

    3.00

    Runners Up

    1.80

    3rd Place

    0.90

    4th Place

    0.90

    5th Place

    0.45

    6th Place

    0.45

    The LIVE coverage of the ‘Toughest Week’ of vivo Pro Kabaddi League Season 7 begins at 7:00 pm with the pre-show KBD LIVE, whilst matches begin at 7:30 pm and will broadcast on the Star Sports Network and Hotstar.

    Book your tickets on bookmyshow: bit.ly/2pzcvJs. Tickets can also be bought offline at the box office at EKA Arena by TransStadia. This year vivo Pro Kabbadi is also introducing a Fan Fest including live concerts on each of the Playoff days. Gates open for the Fan Fest at 3:30 pm with the concerts beginning at 5:30 pm

  • VIVO Pro Kabaddi league season 7 schedule announced

    VIVO Pro Kabaddi league season 7 schedule announced

    MUMBAI: Mashal Sports Pvt. Ltd, the organizer of the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) have announced the fixtures for Season 7 starting July 20th. The opening match at Gachibowli Stadium, Hyderabad will have Telugu Titans’ superstar Siddharth Desai taking on his former team U Mumba. Season 7 will build new heroes and have each team playing all other teams twice. The schedule minimizes difference between matches played across teams at any given time making every game more crucial in the race to the playoffs. The LIVE coverage of the new season will begin at 7:00 pm with matches beginning at 7:30 pm on the Star Sports Network and Hotstar.

    VIVO Pro Kabaddi League Season VII – What’s new:

    Players and Coaches:

    Siddharth ‘Bahubali’ Desai had a brilliant debut season with U Mumba and will look forward to recreating the magic for his new team – Telugu Titans
    The ‘Showman’ that’s Rahul Chaudhari moves to Tamil Thalaivas playing alongside Ajay ‘Thalaiva’ Thakur
    The season will also see new coaches take to the mat- Anup Kumar for Puneri Paltan and Rakesh Kumar for Haryana Steelers
    With top familiar faces like Ajay Thakur, Rahul Chaudhari and Pardeep ‘King’ Narwal a new generation of breakout stars including Siddharth Desai and ‘Hi-Flyer’ Pawan Shehrawat are gearing up to take VIVO Pro Kabaddi Season 7 by storm

    The League:

    The season returns to the original VIVO PKL calendar of July to October, with the league beginning on July 20th and Finals on October 19th, 2019.
    The caravan continues with a focus on an equitable league table in a double round robin format where each team will play every other team twice, and the top six will go to the playoffs
    Each city leg begins on Saturdays while rest days for the team are on Tuesdays
    All home teams get 4 days rest before and after their home legs giving them adequate rest before their home leg
    The home teams play 4 home matches: Saturdays, Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays
    All teams will have played an equal number of games by the half-way mark of the season

    The season opener will see Telugu Titans and U Mumba take to the mat, and both teams will be looking to begin strong and lay down the marker as the team to fear. All eyes in game 1 will be on Siddharth ‘Bahubali’ Desai who is now part of Telugu Titans. He had a phenomenal start to his VIVO Pro Kabaddi career finishing with over 200 raid points at U Mumba last season.

    The second game on opening day will be a battle of the champions – defending champions Bengaluru Bulls take on three-time winners Patna Pirates and both will look to get one up on the other and take a step in the direction to winning the trophy again this season. Will the Dubki King Pardeep Narwal’s raiding prowess break some more records, or will Hi- Flyer Pawan Sehrawat, the winner of the league’s Most Valuable Player award in Season 6 lead his team to its first win?

    The other highly anticipated matches through the week include the big southern derby between Telugu Titans and Tamil Thalaivas. This has been a high-octane derby for the past two seasons, but this time, ‘the Showman’, Rahul Chaudhari will play for Tamil Thalaivas, and will pair up with his close friend and captain Ajay ‘Thalaiva’ Thakur.

  • VIVO PRO KABADDI SEASON VI BIGGER, BETTER AND FITTER

    VIVO PRO KABADDI SEASON VI BIGGER, BETTER AND FITTER

    MUMBAI: India’s most anticipated kabaddi league, VIVO Pro Kabaddi is back, with Season VI as the 12 fittest captains unveil the most coveted trophy.

    The bravest 12, Surjeet Singh from Bengal Warriors, Joginder Singh Narwal from Dabang Delhi, Sunil Kumar from Gujarat Fortunegiants, Surender Nada, from Haryana Steelers, Anup Kumar from Jaipur Pink Panthers, Pardeep Narwal for defending Champions Patna Pirates, Girish Ernak from Puneri Paltans, Vishal Bharadwaj from Telugu Titans, Rishank Devadiga from UP Yoddha, Dharmaraj Cheralathan, from U Mumba came together on one stage, decoding their strategy for the season.

    Talking about the famous Dubki, Pardeep Narwal, Captain, Patna Pirates, said, “I will never stop doing the dubki. This season along with the dubki, I have worked on multiple strategic moves to counter our opponents. For Patna Pirates, one of the most challenging teams we believe is Puneri Paltan because their defense is very strong. I look forward to the season and I am going to take the trophy home this time.”

    Talking about the team composition, Ajay Thakur, Captain, Tamil Thalaivas, said, “In the previous season our team composition was heavy on youngsters. So, if it happened that I was not on the mat, taking instant decisions was tough. This year, the team has a perfect balance of young and experienced players, we have Manjeet Chillar, Jasvir Singh and Sukesh Hegde who can take phenomenal decisions at the spur of the moment during the match.”

    Commenting on the biggest rivals for Bengaluru Bulls this season, Captain Rohit Kumar, said, “According to me, the team that puts its best foot forward will win, it is a competition, and everyone will come prepared. In my opinion Tamil Thalaivas is the most prepared team for this season, under the able guidance from Ajay Thakur. In terms of players, Surrender Nada is the one defender who is the toughest to beat for a raider, along with being the best, he also covers up when his team falters.”

    Talking about the impact of fitness in a 3-month long league, Rishank Devadiga, Captain, UP Yoddha, said, “Earlier the season was shorter, and the chances of injury were higher as players prove their mettle on the mat each day. With a 3-month long league, there is enough break period for players to rest and recuperate. The challenge in a longer league is the maintain a certain level of fitness consistently which is what we at UP Yoddha’s are training for.”

    The inaugural ceremony of Season VI will be a star-studded affair, with eminent sports icons and film personalities expected to attend. Shruti Hassan and face of VIVO PKL in Tamil Nadu, Vijay Sethupathi will be seen cheering for their favourite teams along with fans on opening day.

    In a first, to further build team affinity and fan loyalty, Star Sports has introduced invitational regional campaigns for key markets, Bengaluru Bulls – Bulls Gala Budhwaara (Wednesday), Telegu Titans – Titans Tho Tuesday and U Mumba – Saturday Night, U Mumba Chi Night, heralding the weekly team slots for the 3 squads.

    Gearing up for the exhilarating matches across 13 weeks, the teams have been training fastidiously to prepare for a competitive season. With many firsts this season, the caravan will travel to Kochi for the play-offs and the grand finale will be held in Mumbai on the 5th of January, 2018.

    From October 7th, 2018 to January 5th 2019, fans can catch each match LIVE, 7:30 pm onwards, on the Star Sports Network including the FTA channel Star Sports First, regional channel Star Sports 1 Tamil, in Kannada on Star Suvarna Plus, in Telugu on Star Maa Gold and Hotstar.

  • Star Sports launches campaign for the sixth season of VIVO Pro Kabaddi

    Star Sports launches campaign for the sixth season of VIVO Pro Kabaddi

    MUMBAI: Star Sports, India’s leading sports broadcaster announces the launch of the national campaign for season VI of VIVO PKL. The campaign speaks the language of Indianess, bravery and fitness, that is core to kabaddi. The truly Indian sport epitomises bravery, when a raider enters the court to challenge seven opposition players. It makes a strong statement that only the fittest can conquer and the campaign brings to the forefront these attributes that are intrinsic to the sport.

    In India, kabaddi has been a great childhood sport, however, professionally it is no child’s play. Arising from this insight, the creative adaptation of the campaign ‘BACCHPAN KA KHEL HAI, BACCHO KA NAHI’ builds on the key insight that the homegrown sport is a part of our collective childhood, a local sport we played as kids in every nook and corner, however, to play at VIVO PKL you need to be the best.

    The campaign film depicts the insight with impeccable cinematic display, portraying the daily regime followed by players and the tireless hours that go into training, to excel on the mat. Every player that approaches the mat trains differently, the film opens with Pardeep Narwal who is seen running and then moves into other players Rishank Deavdiga, Anup Kumar and Monu Goyat who are training their best to prove themselves this season. The players through the film depict the sheer dedication, skill, physical and mental grind that goes into playing the sport.

    Commenting on the launch of the campaign for the sixth season of VIVO Pro Kabaddi, a Star Sports spokesperson, said, “VIVO Pro Kabaddi has taken a homegrown sport to new heights of fervour and popularity. The Season VI campaign, focuses on the skill, dedication and rigour required to play the sport. Kabaddi is tough and played by some of the bravest and fittest athletes today. The film takes you through their everyday journey as they prepare for the upcoming season.”

    The category defining sporting league has transformed Kabaddi in India, raking in record viewership figures and laying the groundwork for the phoenix like rise of India’s home-grown sport across the globe. With the onset of Season VI, VIVO Pro Kabaddi is all set to get bigger, better and more engaging than ever before. Beginning in early October, the league will travel across 13 host cities and will culminate in Mumbai. The 12 teams have been divided into 2 zones of 6 teams each, where each of them will be playing 15 intra zone and 7 inter- zone matches prior to the play offs. The play offs stage will comprise of 3 action-packed qualifiers and 2 eliminators scheduled to take place in Kochi and Mumbai.

  • Star Sports announces kbd juniors season 2: india’s largest televised school outreach programme

    Star Sports announces kbd juniors season 2: india’s largest televised school outreach programme

    MUMBAI: India’s sport of Kabaddi has grown leaps and bounds with the growth of India’s flagship kabaddi league, VIVO Pro Kabaddi. Encouraging the growth of the sport amongst the younger generation, Star Sports announces the second season of KBD Juniors. Season 2 will be hosted across the 12 Vivo Pro Kabaddi Season VI cities. The tournament will have 24 schools per city, and 3,500 students between the age group of 11 to 12 years battle it out to make it to the grand finale.

    Kabaddi requires nimble footwork of a boxer, the strength of a wrestler, tactical acuity of a chess player, agility and reflexes of a gymnast and endurance of a runner. Keeping this spirit of Kabaddi alive amongst the younger generation, KBD Juniors Season 2, will be bigger and better as the invitation to participate in the tournament was shared with multiple schools and 288 schools will participate this season, an advancement from the 96 schools that participated in season 1.

    Building on the success of Season 1, that registered an impressive cumulative reach of 156.4 million viewers over the season, and had South Point World School from Sonipat win the title, Season 2 is now back to crown new glory. To ensure maximum participation from schools across the 12 cities, the invitational tournament has been designed as city qualifiers, city finals and national finals.

    The city qualifiers, scheduled to be hosted between end of August and early September, as the run up to Season VI of VIVO Pro Kabaddi. 24 schools are divided into 8 groups of 3 teams who will play against each other. From each group, the team finishing first will then make it to the round of city finals, which will take place during the home leg of each city as part of Season VI of VIVO Pro Kabaddi and then the National finals.

    The city qualifiers began today in Hyderabad, where the new participating schools include, Scholars International School, Oxford Grammar School, Nampally Vyayamshala High School, Lotus School, Manikonda, among others. Hyderabad Public School, Gitanjali Senior School and VV Govt school had participated in KBD Juniors Season 1 and P. Obul Reddy Public School won the city finals.

    KBD Juniors targeted at young students will offer the benefits of an incredible sport to youngsters across these cities and will help grow the popularity for India’s indigenous sport. To prepare the schools for the tournament, Star Sports along with Mashal Sports Pvt. Ltd., the league organisers also provide initial training to the PE teachers in each school via an introductory kit along with coach meet and greets.

    The season 2 of KBD Juniors will be broadcast on Star Sports and Hotstar during Season VI of VIVO Pro Kabaddi. The broadcast schedule for the matches will be released at a later date.

  • Vivo pro kabaddi season vi starts on 5th october 2018; the finals to be held on 5thjanuary 2019

    Vivo pro kabaddi season vi starts on 5th october 2018; the finals to be held on 5thjanuary 2019

    MUMBAI: Mashal Sports Pvt. Ltd. has announced that the Sixth season of VIVO Pro Kabaddi League will begin on Friday, 5th October 2018 and the finals would be held on 5th January 2019. 

    The league will continue its existing format and will go on for a duration of 13 weeks. In Season V, the league scaled unprecedented heights having expanded from 8 teams to 12 teams and conducting 138 matches over a duration of 13 weeks, touching new highs in terms of viewership records. It was viewed by 313 million viewers with a watch time of 100 billion minutes, with the finals of season V becoming the most viewed non-cricket sporting event on Indian Television.

    Anupam Goswami, League Commissioner, VIVO Pro Kabaddi said, “The change of window for the League from the usual July-October cycle has been actioned to ensure full availability of top players from India and overseas, given the 2018 Asian Games. This window also allows the teams and fans to capitalise on the opportunities afforded by the festive season. The whole League ecosystem is geared to provide the highest standard Kabaddi experience for fans in Season VI.”

    Dr Mridul Bhadauria, President, AKFI said, “The VIVO Pro Kabaddi League has catalyzed the growth and popularity of Kabaddi in our country since its inception in 2014 and we at the Federation eagerly await the onset of Season VI. VIVO Pro Kabaddi has established itself as a highly competitive league and we only expect the competition to get better year on year. We wish the franchises the very best and look forward to the best of Kabaddi”

    VIVO Pro Kabaddi became the biggest domestic sports league in its fifth and most successful season till date. Season VI promises to be even more action packed, offering nail biting Kabaddi matches for fans across the country.

    Fans can catch the VIVO Pro Kabaddi Season VI action in stadiums, on the Star Sports Network and Hotstar as per the schedule to be announced.

  • VIVO Pro Kabaddi Season 6 gives fans the power to choose their players

    VIVO Pro Kabaddi Season 6 gives fans the power to choose their players

    MUMBAI: Riding on the back of 5 phenomenal seasons, VIVO Pro Kabaddi, scheduled to take place on the 30th and 31st of May 2018 in Mumbai, will witness a stronger fan engagement this season. VIVO Pro Kabaddi launched a contest on their official website by giving fans a chance to don the owner’s hat this season. Fans get a chance to pick players for their favourite team,  fans can select 3 players for their team – a Raider, a Defender and an All-rounder. Fans can log onto https://www.prokabaddi.com/fan-voice, select their favourite team and choose players who they think will make it to their favourite team till May 30th –  the first day of the auction.

    VIVO PKL Season VI Player Auction from the broadcasters perspective:

    Taking the player auctions a notch higher is the introduction of the Bid-o-Meter, a graphical representation, similar to a speed-o-meter with three distinct ranges (Steal| Fair| Ambitious) for television only. While a bid for a player is active, the needle of the “Bid-o-Meter” will move along the range according to the current bid price till it settles on the final bid, this is done through a backend algorithm that has been tried and tested. The Bid-o-meter uses an analytical algorithm to determine the fair price range for only “Category A Domestic Players” who will be part of the auction process.

    Total Number of players:

    A total of 422 players will be drafted into the auction pool of which 58 are Overseas players and 87 are players from the Future Kabaddi Heroes Programme (FKH), a nationwide talent scouting programme. The auctions will witness player representation from 14 other countries including Iran, Bangladesh, Japan, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Sri Lanka. The two-day auction will mark the first event for Season VI, with the franchises coming together to build their teams. Out of the 12 franchises, 9 have chosen their Elite Retained Players and the remaining 3 will construct their teams from scratch.