PRESS COVERAGE & WELL-WISHERS

PRESS COVERAGE

The press coverage in the Indian media was quite good on the IFSC launch!
Articles have appeared in the MALAYALA MANORAMA daily (Kerala), SPORTWatch magazine (Goa), and in the Calcutta dailies the ASIAN AGE and the TELEGRAPH. Articles are said to follow in the Times of India and other newspapers!
Articles have also appeared on the Internet, at CalcuttaWeb.com, india.com, NetGuruIndia.com and theInder.net!
We hope that others will follow...

The article from "THE TELEGRAPH":

At a time when nothing seems to go right for Indian football, a few expatriates have launched the Indian Football Supporters' Club (IFSC).
The club was officially launched in London on January 26 and its parent organisation called IFSC International is officially registered in the United Kingdom.
The IFSC currently has around 150 members mostly from Europe, especially England and Germany, and North America.
Affiliated organisations are being formed in Leicester, Goa and Kerala.
The objective of the club is to efficiently utilise various facilities and look after matters concerning Indian football promotion and management all over the world.
It wants to work in specific areas like training, coaching, women's football, information database, merchandising, sponsorship, youth development schemes and player exchange programmes.

MESSAGES FROM WELL-WISHERS

Noel da Lima Leitao, Patron Vasco Sport Club (Goa, India):
On the 26th of January 2001, a new era will dawn. The formal launch of the Indian Football Supporters Club will be the start of a new initiative that will cater to the needs of supporters of Indian Football and hopefully contribute greatly to its development worldwide.
The Indian diaspora is spread internationally, contributing in no small measure to the development of global economies and exporting its culture, music and cuisine to the far corners of the planet. But for all its success, it can never come of age until it has made its mark in the field of sports.
For millions of us, here in India, the king of sports is indeed the game of football. We feel that when India emerges as a major power in football, it will have matured as a nation. And there will be no looking back, because we have what it takes to be the best and remain there, not least because of our population size which exceeds a billion intelligent people.
However, at the moment, the game of football in India suffers from a lack of good organisation, poor marketing, sub-standard infrastructure, low level of technical development at all ages and most of all, long term planning. The IFSC has a catalytic role to play in removing all these road-blocks.
The formation of the IFSC, one hopes, will not only serve as a kind of consumer forum for indian football fans, but also progress as a forum for constuctive criticism and suggestions, provide support to the Institutions that run football in the country and help raise funds for the improvement of Indian Football especially in the field of Youth Development in India. Further, it should encourage ethnic Indian footballers abroad and focus on issues facing them. This might mean that the IFSC may have to act as the spearhead to combat racism and racist attacks against ethnic Indian football players.
These are difficult objectives and results will not come overnight. But if you dont take the first step in a long and arduous journey, you can never reach your destination. And if you want to be part of our long march ahead, join the IFSC now.
Remember ... it is easier to criticise than to suggest and its easier to destroy than build. Let's join hands, put our shoulders to the wheel and make our dream a reality.
I take this opportunity to congratulate all those involved in the IFSC and wish the venture a phenomenal success. You can always count on my active involvement.
Noel da Lima Leitao.

Lynn Barreto Miranda (Goa, India):
H i Arunava and everyone at IFSC,
Wishing you'll the very best for the launch of the Indian Football Supporters Club.
Regards,
Lynn Barreto Miranda.

Prads Belsabull (India):
Dearest Renne,
first of all i would like to thank you for including me in the IFSC..(arunava thanks ).....
since i come from northeast india i would love to offer my services to the IFSC .As for spending three hours a week for the club .......well piece of cake .
i cant think of an other way to spend my time more constructively
Prads Belsabull.

Anish Doshi (London, UK):
Hi Rene and Anthony,
I think the constitution, as given below, represents a good and firm start for the IFSC in 2001... Like I said before, I am sorry I wasn't able to help you out before but I fully intend to make more of a positive input from here on.
Anish Doshi.

Mario Fernandes (Leicester, UK):
Hi everyone!
First of all let me say how privileged I feel to be part of a little bit of history in the making.The launch on Republic Day is a dream come true for many of us. I and Steve White thank Rene for inviting us to London.We have worked with Rene on other projects with positive results and we will give our best shot.My son Ashley who is 8 years old convinced me why he should be at the launch as well. For those who are not aware Ashley is the youngest member of any football club in the world unless anyone can prove otherwise. He was registered with Leicester City Football Club when he was (wait for it) 70 mins young.Who says Indians are not interested in football! This is our big chance to prove to the world that we can work together. There are many problems footballwise in India and other countries but now is not the time to look back let join hands and make our dream come true...........
Bye,
Mario Fernandes.

Anthony John (Kochin, India):
Best wishes Arunava, Rene and Anthony, for the launching of our dream project,IFSC...
Go for Goaaaaal, friends...
With all the support from Kerala..
-- Antony John

A. Majeed (Nagpur, India):
Congratulations for taking such a courageous task. Now, we can hope that Indian football, with the efforts of IFSC, can take a new turn. I also support this.
Regards,
A.Majeed

Sunit Maity (Hamburg, Germany):
Hello everybody,
First of all let me congratulate Rene, Anthony and Arunava for their hard work to finally have IFSC as a formal entity. I can understand how much effort u people have put into it. I am very happy that I am also part of this. As I can not be present on 26th jan in London, (though I would love to) I would want to know what u people are going to do on that day. Can it be possible for anyone (who is going to be there) to have some photo and put into our website? Lets hope that 26th jan is going to be a golden day in Indian football history and I think if we all work together we can make it happen. We can fufill our dream of seeing India in World Cup final against ………. Lets do it friends. I am ready to put times (whatever is possible) for Indian football to fulfill the dream.
I want to congratulate again Arunava, Rene and Anthony for their hard work.
That’s all,
Sunit Maity.

Umesh Narayanan (Chennai, India):
Hello friends,
All the very best for your efforts. Even though i will not be able to participate in the function, my mind will be there with you all.
Lets hope that Indian football comes good. All the Best once again.
Bye,
Umesh Narayanan.