© ISLA historic moment in Indian sport is upon us. At a glittering ceremony here today, the Hero Indian Super League was officially launched by Nita Ambani, Sanjay Gupta, Praful Patel, Pawan Munjal, and owners of the eight ISL clubs. The event kicked off with presenters Mark Bolton and Mayanti Langer inviting Sanjay Gupta, COO of Star India, to address the gathering about his vision for the future of Indian football. Mr. Gupta described the ISL launch as “the birth of a footballing nation.” He then went on to express confidence in his dream that in ten years, children in the country will have posters of ISL players on their walls alongside those of international stars such as Wayne Rooney.Following Mr. Gupta’s speech, All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel spoke about the AIFF’s commitment to grassroots development of football through the ISL. He also proudly revealed that the ISL was the “first tournament of its kind, anywhere” to get approval from football governing body FIFA.Pawan Munjal, CEO of title sponsors Hero MotoCorp, enthusiastically spoke about his company’s association with the ISL, stating that he wished such a tournament had happened “many, many years ago”. He then joined his fellow partners in advocating the goals of the ISL grassroots development programme.The eight clubs were then showcased, with their owners and representatives coming onstage to sign the official ISL pledge. They were joined by Nita Ambani, here in her capacity of Founding Chairperson, Football Sports Development. Reinforcing the day’s theme of grassroots development, she announced the ambitious goal of reaching out to a million children in the first year of the programme. She was joined by two youth footballers, Alen Deory and Mohammad Sajid, who had won scholarships through the Reliance Foundation to attend a training camp in Florida. Both have exciting futures in Indian football, with Alen being confirmed as a member of the NorthEast United FC squad, and Mohammad already a part of the youth national team setup. The two young stars joined Mrs. Ambani in announcing IMG-Reliance’s “Young Champs” programme. She rounded off her speech by imploring everyone to work towards the “dream of seeing India at the World Cup.”Mrs. Ambani and the team owners then presented the event’s grand reveal: the unveiling of the ISL logo. Following a short but dazzling lights display, the image that will symbolise Indian football’s audacious new venture was revealed to the audience. The logo, a vibrant outline of a red football, symbolises the dynamism and fast pace of the game. This is reinforced by the use of red, which exudes energy and passion.Following the logo presentation, each team’s owner/representative was invited to say a few words on behalf of his club.Team Owners/RepresentativesVarun Dhawan (representing FC Goa)Sameer Manchanda (co-owner, Delhi Dynamos FC)Utsav Parekh (co-owner, Atlético de Kolkata)John Abraham (co-owner, NorthEast United FC)Abhishek Bachchan (co-owner Chennaiyin FC)Kapil Wadhawan (co-owner, FC Pune City)Ranbir Kapoor (co-owner, Mumbai City FC)Sachin Tendulkar (co-owner, Kerala Blasters FC)
