Delhi Dynamos Football Club today announced the launch of a novel initiative to take football to the grassroots by tying up with schools of National Capital Region of Delhi. The initiative’s aims are to help identify, nurture and train talent, and look to provide the necessary platform to talented young children across Delhi/NCR & the North region.

The campaign will kick start with the first ever Junior Dynamos Inter-School Championship, a 7-a-side football tournament, to be played in 4 zones of Delhi/NCR across 3 different age categories (U12, U14 & U17), beginning this August. The Club will also organise the tournament at Chandigarh, Dehradun, Jaipur & Kanpur in North India. These will be played in the months of September, October and November 2014.

The first leg of the junior championship will be played from 19^th-22^nd August at Jaypee Sports Complex, Greater Noida and Ajanta Public School, Gurgaon. It will feature the top schools from East Delhi, Noida, Greater Noida and Gurgaon. A week later, action will shift to DDA Sports Complex, Vasant Kunj & Ganga International School as the young prodigies from schools of Central, South, North & West Delhi will showcase their football skills. The Zonal Champions of the Junior Dynamos Inter-School Championship would then get the opportunity to play at the Jawahar Lal Nehru Stadium training ground as they face each other in a knockout format to seize the ultimate crown.

Mr. Piyush Goyal, Head new Initiatives-DEN Networks & Director-DEN Soccer, said: “Aligning with schools is the best way to identify and promote talent and football is no exception. We are kick starting this elaborate campaign across NCR and four other cities in the very first edition of ISL.”

There are also plans in place to have Junior Dynamos scouts present at the various venues, who will select the best 100 players (U14 & U17) and coach them for the next two months on full scholarship. These young players will then play in the Junior Dynamos Elite League at JLN Stadium training ground during ISL match days.

Based on the performance, Scouts would then select the top 30 players (U14) who would form the Delhi Dynamos Youth Team. The chosen stars will undergo a 6-month long training program under the Junior Dynamos Coaches on full scholarship. These players will represent Delhi Dynamos in Youth Leagues across India.

Speaking about young talent in the country, Mr. Goyal said: “There is raw talent & energy in the youngsters and we are here to channelize this energy. I am confident that with guidance from top notch coaches, and our commitment, these players will surely make a mark at various levels including international tournaments.”

At the press conference, the team also announced the Junior Dynamos Train The Trainers initiative. Under this exclusive program, the Junior Dynamos Coaches will conduct a series of 2-day workshops for over 100 P.E. Teachers in Delhi & NCR throughout the year.

The focus on grassroots football is a key component of the Hero Indian Super League, which should produce several top level footballers for the national team in the future.