Wenger’s role in grassroots programmes

NEW DELHI: Arsene Wenger, former Arsenal manager and world governing body FIFA’s current chief of global football development, will play a role in Indian football’s grassroots programmes and talent development.

During the World Cup in Qatar, All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Kalyan Chaubey had held deliberations with Wenger and other senior officials of the FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) regarding youth development projects in India.

“We have had extensive discussions with the FIFA development team. Arsene Wenger is the head of the FIFA Task Force and they will help us in the grassroots programme. Coaches from Wenger’s team would come,” Chaubey said after unveiling AIFF’s ‘Vision 2047’ roadmap.

The roadmap hopes that in the country’s centenary year of Independence, India would emerge as a new powerhouse of Asian football. Developed in conjunction with all stakeholders of Indian football, the roadmap has also sought and incorporated inputs from the AFC and the FIFA.

The salient ambitions of the roadmap are to see India among the top four footballing nations in Asia, host one of the top leagues in the continent, and create a vibrant ecosystem. “‘Vision 2047’ has been broken down, for diligent implementation, into six four-year strategic plans. The first of these will look to cover the period till 2026. “With a shared vision and by sharing responsibility, we can implement targeted programmes to address key areas identified in this roadmap and help build capacity for the football ecosystem,” Chaubey said.

He also said that the aim is to revive “the glory days of Indian football as it was in the 1950s and 60s and become a powerhouse of Asian football once again”.

One of the key aspects of the roadmap is to ensure increased access to competition and games for players plying their trade in the country. By 2047, the federation wants to ensure players will be able to play at least 55 matches across different competitions every season.