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Our Correspondent
Imphal, July 6 (EMN): Manipur is all set to witness the first ever North East Women's Football League (NEWFL) under the aegis of All Manipur Football Association (AMFA) from July 7 to the 24th at Sports Authority of India (SAI) ground in Imphal.
It is being held with the support of Ananthapura Sports Events Pvt Ltd, a Rajasthan based company
Addressing a press conference, Chairman Amin Pathan of Anantapura Sports Events Pvt Ltd, said, “This tournament is being organised on a certain level and this will give ample opportunity to many new players to show their talent and improve their performance so that the football players will go ahead in the national stage.”
He added that eight teams namely Manipur Sangais, Tripura Pythons, Arunachal Pradesh Tigers, Assam Rhinos, Meghalaya Leopards, Nagaland Wild Hogs, Sikkim Pandas, and Mizoram Black Bears are participating in first edition of NEWFL.
Two matches will be played every day at 12.30 pm and 3 pm during the tourney. A total of 31 matches will be played in the tournament on a league cum knockout basis. The tournament will be continued in the coming years as well.
The cash prize of the winning team will be INR 5 lakh while the runner-up title holder will receive INR2.5 lakh besides other attractive prizes for the individuals.
The NEWFL Season-1 will be a new platform for women football players of the region as it will feature national and international football players as well as star footballers, he said.
“Celebrities like Lara Dutt and Sushmita Sen are also expected to take part during the tourney, as we’re initiating a talk,” he said.
Stating that the future of football is the NEWFL competition, he admitted the matches will be broadcast live on 1Sports channel and along with it, live streaming will also be done on YouTube.
Sharing her personal comment, Oinam Bembem, the first indian woman footballer to receive Padma Shri award, said, “I think such tournament will help young players from the NE states in learning and enhancing their skills. I’m really excited to look forward for such an encouraging football league for the women footballers.”
Bollywood actor Jitu Verma (Jojo)along with AMFA President M Ratan Kumar Singh, Vice President Dilbung Kowar, secretary L Jyotirmoy Roy and others were also present during the press conference.