Durand Cup gets a makeover
After seeing years of struggle where it kept shifting places in search of support, Durand Cup has finally found its new home in Kolkata, which is giving the 133-year-old tournament all the reasons to feel rejuvenated, says Lt General K.K. Repswal, the Chief of Staff, Eastern Command, and the chairman of the tournament’s organising committee. The success of the 130th edition of the tournament was a great relief for the organiser as football came out of the strict confines of the ‘bio-bubble’ and opened the gates for the spectators for the first time since the pandemic hit the country.
“The reason behind its transfer to Kolkata has largely been fulfilled in the way it is generating enthusiasm among the people. With the COVID pandemic still around, we waited for the situation to improve and decided to allow spectators from the quarterfinal stage. The response has been overwhelming from the fans and even the participating teams, who were very keen to start playing in front of the fans,” says Repswal.
When asked about the possibility of the Durand
Cup becoming a regular pre-season tournament, the Repswal responded in the affirmative.
“Before we started our preparation for the 130th edition, we connected with the All India Football Federation top brass, including its president Praful Patel and general secretary Kushal Das. We also interacted with FSDL (Football Sports Development Limited) people in Mumbai and the broadcaster Star Sports to ensure that we became a part of the football ecosystem. Everyone wanted Durand Cup to become the season-opening tournament,” he said.
The Durand Cup will have an expanded format from the next edition, says Repswal. “We were very keen to have the tournament this year as 2021 is being celebrated all over the country as the Swarnim Vijay Varsh. I am very confident we will have at least 24 teams, if not 2■ teams, in Durand Cup from next season. We are also planning to move some of the pool matches out of Kolkata and have them in Siliguri, Guwahati, Shillong, and other areas in the North East. The teams will move to Kolkata from the quarterfinal stage,” he said.