With the auctions for the IMG-Reliance - run Indian Super League (ISL) approaching in a couple of months, there have been talks of the homegrown corporation, Tata Group, acquiring a franchise for the upcoming season. This speculation has been doing the rounds after the powerful conglomerate were propositioned for the same by IMG- Reliance. IMG-Reliance is currently attempting to expand from eight to ten teams in the near future.
The Tata group has been long associated with sports, especially the field of football, with the efficacious Tata Football Academy in Jamshedpur shaping exceptional players who have brought us national pride for the last thirty years. The group sent three players to the 1960 Rome Olympics from their team - Babu Narayan, Fortunato Franco and Dev Das. Their successful Bombay-based football team that started at independence stopped operating in the 80s. The group also happens to be represented by Lionel Messi globally – yes, the Barcelona superstar is the Global Brand Ambassador for our very own Tata Motors.
Should the group chairman N Chandrasekaran decide to join hands with the ISL, Jamshedpur will possibly be the next city to join other eight franchises that are Pune, Mumbai, Delhi, Goa, Guwahati, Kolkata, Kochi and Chennai in the next season. The ISL, which has been running successfully for the last three seasons, has found its way to being a premiere football league and is expected to be representative of our country in Asian Competitions, instead of the I-League which is now going to be referred to as the second division. The ISL will also most likely run for an extended period of five months, instead of the usual three.
A source from Tata told Sportskeeda, “TATA has been a significant member of India’s footballing ecosystem for a long time, the best youth players till this date pass out from the TATA Football Academy in Jamshedpur. Yes, we are currently exploring option within the commercial circuit as well for an easier transition of our youth team players to a senior setup.”
The leadership is yet to give a final say, but this news comes as a huge encouragement to the brand in this widely loved evolving sector. An affirmation from the Tata group will bring collaboration between two of the largest corporate power-houses of our country on the same platform.
This transitioning phase of sporting events in the time of big corporate involvements has not been able to garner much attention from the Tata group. Despite their long-drawn commitment to the sports sector, the group has held back from acquiring a franchise in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The group continues to be committed to the growth of this sector through other endeavours such as Tata Open, one of the leading badminton tournaments in the country; and the Tata Archery Academy in Jamshedpur, set up to promote and give opportunities to indigenous people with archery skills.
