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Coca-Cola India and All India Football Federation launch the third edition of the 'Coca Cola Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy' 2011
~ Under-16 tournament will identify young players for India's Sub Junior football team~
  • Tournament to span 76 Cities across 27 states
  • Reaches out to 40,000 young footballers from 2500 schools
  • Partnership takes forward Coca-Cola India's commitment to promote sports and a healthy, active lifestyle
    • New Delhi, 17th August, 2011: Coca-Cola India and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) today announced the launch of the third edition of the Coca-Cola Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy (CCMIHT) 2011. This tournament is a grassroots level initiative which would identify young football talent by offering them a chance to be a part of the National Under-16 Football Team. This year, the tournament is estimated to witness participation from 40,000 young footballers from 2500 schools across 76 cities in 27 states.
    The inaugural match of this edition of the tournament is being played today between Rosary School and Vibgyor International School in Baroda. Coca-Cola Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy is part of Coca-Cola India's commitment to create a sporting culture in the country by promoting a healthy and active lifestyle.
    According to Kushal Das, General Secretary, AlI India Football Federation (AIFF), "Sporting events such as 'The Coca-Cola Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy', provide young footballers with an opportunity to showcase their talent and to be a part of the India Under-16 Football Team. We have received an overwhelming response over the last two years and we are thrilled to take this nationwide tournament to the next level. We are working towards providing the right infrastructure and training facilities to the youth and our partnership with Coca-Cola India is a boost to our plans. We believe that this tournament will play an active role in encouraging youngsters to adopt football as their preferred sport."
    This football tournament is an initiative to discover budding football talent in the country and prepare a strong team for the under-16 Indian Football team.
    According to Anupama Ahluwalia, VP-Marketing, Coca-Cola India & South West Asia, "With Coca-Cola Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy, we are committed to nurture potential football superstars of tomorrow by providing them with a platform and an opportunity to develop their inherent talent into a real-life profession. We are a Company with a worldwide focus on football and believe in promoting a healthy, active lifestyle. We believe that Indian football has huge potential and by supporting AIFF for this tournament, we are tapping young football talent to train them according to International football standards."
    More About The Coca-Cola Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy
    The Coca-Cola Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy is an annual grass root level football tournament organized by AIFF since 1977. Players born on or after 01-01-97 will be eligible to participate in the tournament. The initiative aims to discover budding football talent in the country and prepare a strong Under-16 Indian Football team. This year, the tournament will be played across 75 cities tapping over 40,000 young footballers from 2500 schools.
    The tournament will be played in the following format:
    Stage I (District & State Level): The tournament will begin with Inter-School tournaments at a District Level. This would be followed by a competition or a skill trial among talented football players organized by the various District Football Associations. District level teams will then compete within their State, where the State Football Association will select a team to represent the respective state at the Regional level. Inter-State Tournaments would be held in 5 regional rounds.
    Stage II (Zonal Level): 27 state teams will compete with each other across four zones- (a) North East, (b) South (c) WEST (d) East and (e) North. Top two teams from each zone will then advance to the national level.
    Stage III (National Level): Ten teams from the zonal level will then qualify for the national level which will be played at New Delhi in December 2011. In the end, two teams will play the National Finals with the winners lifting the 'Coca-Cola Mir Iqbal Hussain Trophy' 2011.
    During the Stage III, AIFF talent spotters will identify and short-list 40 promising young footballers who would be coached and groomed to form the National Under-16 Sub-Junior Team.
    About All India Football Federation (AIFF)
    The All India Football Federation was formed in 1937 and was affiliated to FIFA in 1948. AIFF is one of the founder members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
    AIFF is the official football aegis of India that manages, governs, controls and regulates the sport in the country. AIFF manages the competitions such as I-League, Federation Cup, Santosh Trophy and the age-group competition for boys, girls, men and women. On the other hand the federation focuses on the development side of the sport i.e. grassroots, coaching and other technical areas associated with football in India.
    About Coca-Cola India
    Coca-Cola in India refreshes millions of consumers throughout the country with an exciting range of beverages including Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Thums Up, Fanta, Limca, Sprite, Maaza, Maaza Milky Delite, Minute Maid Pulpy Orange, Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh, Minute Maid Mixed Fruit, Minute Maid Apple, Georgia, Georgia Gold, Kinley, Kinley Club Soda, Burn, Nestea, Minute Maid 100% juice range through a network of more than one million outlets. The company has invested more than US$ 1 billion in its Indian operations, emerging as one of the country's top international investors. The Coca-Cola system in India employs more than 25,000 people directly. For more information and details on the company's Indian operations please visit: www.coca-colaindia.com
    For further queries please contact Perfect Relations- 0124- 4100131/32