From playing in small local playgrounds to world-class stadiums in the host country of the FIFA World Cup 2014, six teenagers in the city have come a long way.
These local footballers, who were keenly following their favourite idols on television screens until now, were in for a surprise when they learnt they would be representing India in the ‘Football for Hope’ festival in Brazil which will be held parallel to the World Cup there .
The six teenagers, including three girls, are all from economically weak backgrounds.
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They will be playing against 32 teams from across the world in Rio de Janeiro from July 2 to 10. Moreover, they will also have a chance to watch one quarterfinal match of the FIFA tournament.
The excitement was apparent on the faces of the six youngsters, all aged around 18 years, as they narrated experiences of how they developed an interest in the game. All were handpicked from their schools for training by the NGO ‘Dream A Dream’, which aims to develop life skills through sports.
One of the team, Bhaskar S. R., points out that besides being an enjoyable sport, football helped him develop discipline and dignity. Five among the group are pursuing undergraduate courses while the sixth is in her second year of pre-university.
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While the group admits that it is difficult to manage both academics and football, they are very clear about making time for the sport they love.
The team recently attended a rigorous residential training camp in Magadi.
All six train for two hours every morning with their coach Vinod Kumar, who says that confidence is the team’s USP.
“All of them have taken their task very seriously ,” says Mr. Kumar.
In a country where cricket takes an upper hand over other sports, the NGO has been focusing on football since the last eight years .
Vishal Talreja, CEO, Dream A Dream, says there is an existing pool of football talent, especially in urban slums, that needs to be tapped.
The festival was launched by FIFA in 2005 to help support and improve the lives of youths. Participants are chosen from centres across the world which have helped contribute to betterment of lives through football. The match follows the ‘Football 3 methodology’ where each team will comprise four players (with two rolling substitutes) and the match will last for 15 minutes. The team will be playing in two formats in the tournament including mixed teams.