What’s the story?
Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi received a personally signed football jersey by Cristiano Ronaldo from his Portuguese counterpart Antonio Costa after bilateral talks between the two in New Delhi.
"We are aware, that you are an avid soccer fan. Portugal's strength in football and the rapid development of this sport in India could well form the nucleus of an emerging partnership in sporting disciplines," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, appreciating Portugal's status as a global football giant.
In case you didn’t know
Costa, who has ancestral ties to India, is on a seven-day visit to the national capital. The two leaders will discuss the entire spectrum of bilateral relations pertaining to the affairs of both the countries.
The heart of the matter
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Saturday, held a conclave with Antonio Costa as India and Portugal signed seven key agreements including affairs of defence and security, information technology and energy amongst others.
Later in the day, the Portuguese Prime Minister was scheduled for official talks with President Pranab Mukherjee and Vice-President Hamid Ansari to strengthen ties and called for tougher action against global terror.
Modi also thanked Prime Minister Costa for giving his support to India's pursuit of a permanent membership in the UN Security Council.
“We are also grateful for the support extended by Portugal to India's membership of the Missile Technology Control Regime, and for its continued support for India's membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group," Mr. Modi added according to Indian Express.
Antonio Costa will also attend the ‘Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit’ in Gandhinagar on Tuesday.
What’s next
In the last leg of his visit to India, Costa – who traces his ancestral roots to Goa – will be in Union Territory on the 11th and 12th of January where he will be meeting the Governor and the Chief Minister.
Sportskeeda’s take
With one of the greatest footballers of this generation, Cristiano Ronaldo hailing from Portugal, as well as legends such as Eusebio and Luis Figo, one will hope that this can be an important step in helping India become a footballing giant.
While the agreements are in good future for both the countries, we really hope that the respective governments initiate such measures pertaining to the development of sports too.
