Arsene Wenger to visit India in October to finalize the launch of a central academy 

Former head coach of Arsenal and current Chief of FIFA Global Football Foundation Arsene Wenger is gearing up for a visit to India in October. The iconic manager will arrive during the second week of October to finalize arrangements for the restructured central football academy in the country.

According to reports, a meeting took place involving AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey, secretary Shaji Prabakaran, Wenger, Steven Martens, FIFA's technical director, and Ulf Schott, head of high-performance programmes in Australia.

This gathering aims to establish a collaboration between FIFA and AIFF to launch a central academy for boys and girls under the age of 13.

In alignment with Vision 2047, which was released by AIFF a few months ago, India aspires to become one of the top four footballing nations in Asia. The inception of this program marks a significant step towards improving the grassroots of Indian football.

With Wenger's involvement in assisting AIFF, the federation is certainly set to establish a high-quality program that aligns with its goals. Importantly, the proposed academy will not operate in isolation; rather, it will be part of a larger network with approximately four to five feeder academies.

In response to the meeting with Arsene Wenger, Kalyan Chaubey expressed his thoughts and said:

“I am glad to say that we are on the verge of setting up a state-of-the-art centralized academy in India, along with FIFA, with Mr. Arsène Wenger playing a key role in the whole setup. I am sure that with his experience and our industriousness, we can set the ball rolling for India to produce future stars.”

Shaji Prabhakaran also spoke about the program and believes that Wenger is convinced of India’s potential and his involvement will have a significant impact on Indian football.

"We are eagerly looking forward to welcoming Arsène Wenger to India for this very important project. I have no doubt that he will have a significant impact on developing elite players in India and we can safely say that his joining hands to produce top talents in India means that the professor is convinced about our country’s potential."

Vision 2047 aims to develop grassroots football in India

With Kalyan Chaubey and Shaji Prabhakaran at the helm, there has been a renewed sense of optimism among the Indian football fraternity. India’s success in the recent SAFF Championship and Intercontinental Cup proves that the country is on the right path to attaining its goals.

In this context, the proposed Vision 2047 is crucial, especially in terms of grassroots development. There are also plans in place for the state and district associations to conduct leagues every season.

Moreover, the implementation of the long-awaited promotion and relegation system in Indian football has finally come to fruition, with Punjab FC becoming the first team to secure a place in the ISL on sporting merit.

With the number of games increasing at the grassroots level and the introduction of state-of-the-art academies, India will certainly reap the rewards in the future.