Indiantelevision.com Team

(10 July 2008 4:00 pm)

NEW DELHI: Bharti Enterprises has signed an agreement with the All India Football Federation (AIFF) to support the development of India's Under-16 football team.

According to the agreement, AIFF, the official governing body in India for football, and Bharti will promote a "powerful" football and "sporting culture" in the country.

The agreement, which has been signed for a period of one year, is also expected to help the team prepare for the Asian Football Championship, to be held in Uzbekistan in October 2008.

On the association with AIFF, Bharti Enterprises chairman and Group CEO Sunil Bharti Mittal said, "India's strength today is its vast pool of youth population. Developing a strong youth program is one of the top priorities of our partnership with AIFF to create a powerful football culture in India. We hope that this team's achievements at the international level will be a major catalyst in further promoting football amongst the youth of India."

Meanwhile, Bharti already has a MoU with AIFF to build a comprehensive National Football Development Program (NFDP).

Commenting on the agreement, AIFF president Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi added, "The current Under-16 team is a promising lot and has performed exceptionally well at the International level. With the right support and exposure, they can compete at the highest level and make the country proud. We are very happy with the support from Bharti and this will provide a lot of encouragement to the team."

The team is currently playing practice matches in West Virginia, USA and is scheduled to travel to Europe in the coming months. It has already qualified for the Asian Football Championship by defeating teams like Saudi Arabia and Lebanon.