Daily Times

DOHA: Qatar has made its first leap into the growing Indian football market by announcing, on Thursday, a “technical partnership” between Doha’s Aspire Academy and Delhi Dynamos FC. The deal will allow for Aspire to share its expertise in areas such as scouting, training and sports science with the Indian Super League (ISL) club. In return, youth players from the Dynamos will join the “Aspire Residential Programme”, which gives young footballers the chance to train and learn at the Doha academy. Ivan Bravo, Aspire Academy’s Director General, said he was “thrilled” by the partnership. “Today’s announcement marks an important milestone for Delhi Dynamos FC and Aspire Academy,” he said.

“Our two organisations share many of the same values and ambitions, and together we will lay the first foundations of what we hope will become a long-standing partnership in football development between Qatar and India.” The tie-up brings together two of the most ambitious “young” footballing nations, pairing the 2022 World Cup hosts with a country which has potentially one of the sport’s largest audiences in the world.

Anil Sharma, owner of Delhi Dynamos FC, said: “India and Qatar are two countries with close ties and it is only natural that there is a partnership between two organisations based in their respective capital cities.” The state-funded Aspire Academy has scouted millions of players since being established in 2004 and has gained a burgeoning reputation for sporting excellence.

Among the clubs to use its facilities include Barcelona and Bayern Munich. As well as established players using its facilities, Aspire has brought through potential young stars including Villareal’s Akram Afif, the first Qatari to play in La Liga. Another Aspire graduate is Henry Onyekuru, a Nigerian forward rumoured to be on the cusp of a big money move to the English Premier League. The 20-year-old currently appears for Belgian First Division A club KAS Eupen, which is owned by Aspire. Only established in 2013, the ISL is one of the best attended leagues in the world, with an average of more than 26,000 per game. The deal also signals a shift for the Delhi Dynamos, which has previously relied on importing stars from Europe, including France’s Florent Malouda and John Arne Riise.

Published in Daily Times, June 23rd, 2017.