Reliance Foundation and Mizoram Football Association launch Naupang League for grassroots-level development

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Bengaluru, October 31: Reliance Foundation, the CSR arm of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Mizoram Football Association (MFA) joined hands to expand, transform and create a complete hyper-local pathway and decentralised approach to grassroots football in the state through Reliance Foundation Young Champs (RFYC) Naupang (Children) League.

The Naupang League aims to develop local ecosystems and enable aspiring and talented footballers as young as five-year-olds both boys and girls to gain competitive and practice exposure.

As per information received via Reliance media release, the focus is on a broad base of multi-tier, age-group engagements that operate all through the year and meaningfully engage players.

Reliance Foundation Chairperson Nita Ambani said, "Football is a way of life in Mizoram, woven into its social and cultural fabric. This partnership between RF Young Champs and Mizoram Football Association will provide high quality training to talented young boys and girls.

"It'll enable budding footballers as young as five years of age gain competitive exposure and enhanced play time. I'm excited about the immense possibilities it'll open up for children in Mizoram, a state that's heavily invested in football. At RFYC, we remain committed to unlocking the potential of grassroots football across India and helping aspiring footballers achieve their full potential."

Mizoram Football Association Secretary Lalnghinglova Hmar who is also an All India Football Federation Executive Committee Member Lalnghinglova Hmar shared his views, "We're extremely happy with the partnership forged between MFA and Reliance Foundation, and this project can be a game-changer for Mizoram and Indian Football.

"The community participation in the proposed Naupang League will add a different dimension to the competition as it'll be a collective participation of kids, parents and the local community which will drive and motivate the team like never before and fuel the competitiveness of the league. The pilot project in Mizoram which we're confident will be successful, can be used as a blueprint for grassroots development, and the first of its kind, in Indian football.

"We're looking forward to the kick-off and in the same year the FIFA Under-17 Women's World Cup is in India and FIFA Men's World Cup 2022, will give extra enthusiasm to the kids. MFA is glad that Reliance Foundation has been providing a platform to young kids so that they can bring alive their sports dreams."

The RFYC Naupang (Children) League will be hosted in four locations in Mizoram with two models of the league structure. The Mizoram FA and District FAs will host the leagues in Lunglei and Kolasib, enabled by RFYC, while two Leagues in Aizawl and Champhai will be owned and operated by Reliance Foundation Young Champs.

The age categories begin at U-6 and continue until U-13 with multiple game formats. A minimum of 30 games will be played by the kids. RF Young Champs will further integrate with RF Youth Sports in the region to ensure additional games and competitive exposure to deserving players.

The Mizoram football ecosystem is set to benefit immensely from RFYC as its programmes include coach education and development, referee development, enablement of Inter District Championship and and understating match day operations better.