New Delhi, March 29, 2022: Top industry leaders of the global sporting world emphasised the need to bring in sports leadership of a very developed sports economy to Indian audiences, helping in developing a strong sporting ecosystem in their respective disciplines in order to transform the league into a successful brand.
The leaders discussed the matter during the seventh edition of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)’s global sports summit ‘Scorecard 2022’. The eminent speakers from the world of sporting leagues discussed the league models and the need for grassroots programs and converting clubs or franchises into communities in order to grow the sport.
“A competitive sports league is the structure to incubate the next generation of sports talent, and Indian sports leagues must see this opportunity as a responsibility too.
Overall, there are two core lessons already evident from successful sports leagues in India—you have to bring the best of the world to your league and have to create local talent, matching the best of the world. The heart of the league is well-grounded ecosystem management that ensures these two objectives,” said Mr Anupam Goswami, Chairman, CÍI National Committee of Sports.
Alongside Mr Goswami, League Commissioner, Pro Kabaddi League, panellists including Mr Varun Tripuraneni, Owner, Hyderabad FC, Mr Jose Antonio Cachaza, Managing Director, La Liga India, Mr Achyuta Samanta, President, Volleyball Federation of India and Ms Mrinalini Sharma, CMO & Co-Founder, Premier Handball League were part of the discussion.
“The way IPL franchises think about strong growth of sports clubs, diversifying into new business clients, creating new generations of cricket talent for their clubs, I think all sports franchises in India will learn from them and therefore this discussion was very relevant,” he added.
The summit, with sessions on sports tech masterclass, new age engagement of sports fans, employment opportunities, skill development for the future in the sports industry and the Esports landscape in India, covered various aspects of sports and business. The industry experts offered insights into how sporting powerhouse nations around the world anticipate cooperation and collaboration in sports with India.
“Scorecard 2022 looked at the potential of sporting collaboration between India and Sweden and the immense possibilities of these two countries working together in the business of sports. At the same time, it was very encouraging to hear how states like Odisha and Karnataka are already getting firmly back as far as domestic sporting activities are concerned. At the same time the distinguished sports administrators from these two states also articulated the sentiment that so much more still needs to be done to make sports careers aspirational and attractive,” Mr Goswami summarised.
The annual flagship conclave for the business of sports in India Scorecard 2022, under the aegis of the National Committee of Sports of the CII, was conducted virtually with the theme being ‘Priorities and Potential for a New World for Sport’.
