Portugal football legend, Luis Figo is in India to talk about Premier Futsal – a first ever multinational futsal league. Futsal is a five-a-side variant of field football consisting of two halves of 20 minutes each.
The 10-day competition will begin from 15 July and will be held across eight cities in the country. Apart from eight international marquee players, over 50 international futsallers will be part of the league. A nationwide hunt will also be conducted to scout for 40 Indian futsallers, who will get to rub shoulders with some of the world’s best.
Speaking at the launch, President of Premier Futsal and former Ballon d’Or winner, Figo said “Premier Futsal is set to take the sport to the next level internationally. Back in Portugal, I have played futsal extensively growing up which instilled quick thinking, skills and close control.
“When I was young, I had a futsal pitch behind my house so I used to play with my friends a lot. The one on one skills required in futsal helped me in professional football as well. It’s not a new sport, it is a historic sport. We wish to give an opportunity to the fans to witness this.”
Although Figo does not have a coaching badge, he said he would be happy to play in the tournament. However, he wasn’t keen on revealing the names of the eight marquee players who will ply their trade in the league, “That is a business secret! You don’t want to know everything in one day, right? I won’t have any more news to give you then”, the Portuguese legend smilingly added.
The former Real Madrid and Barcelona player was visibly excited with his new project and believes there is tremendous potential to build the sport in India. “I am totally involved in managing the company and of course with my experience in the game, I think I can help in terms of developing the game and my International contacts will be useful too. I am very positive”, he added.
The franchise based futsal league will commence from 15 July and will go on till 24 July.
The Chairman of the tournament, Mr. Xavier Britto also had a few words to say regarding the competition,”Owing to the unique and innovative model, the league will not only disrupt the global futsal scenario but also establish first generation professional futsallers in India. Given the fast paced, all-action nature of the sport and its short duration, we are confident Premier Futsal will capture the imagination of TV audiences as well as fans in the stadia”, he concluded.
