KOCHI: A few years ago, Navas Meeran, then the president of Idukki District Football Association, observed that a boy from a football academy in Kumily was selected to ISL side Chennaiyin FC on a Rs 25-lakh contract. It was an eye-opener for Navas, now the president of Kerala Football Association (KFA).
Football as a means to uplift the lives of people several fold has been an idea that he firmly believes he can deliver on the ground. The result: the launch, in September, of Super League Kerala (SLK), a professional football league featuring six clubs – Calicut, Forca Kochi, Kannur Warriors, Malappuram, Thiruvananthapuram Kombans and Thrissur Magic. While the league aims to provide an avenue for entertainment for the masses, the larger objective is to transform the lives of the people at the bottom of the pyramid through the world’s most popular sport.
Consider this: someone like Thrissur boy K P Rahul earns around Rs 2.8 crore and Sahal Abdul Samad, who is from Payyanur, gets Rs 2.5 crore playing in the Indian Super League (ISL).
“If we can assist some 200 players earn Rs 1 crore, that will transform their lives,” Navas had told reporters ahead of the league organised by Scoreline Sports, the sports arm of Group Meeran. Navas is the chairman of the group.
When the curtains for the inaugural edition of SLK came down in November, it seemed that the tournament had hit all the right notes. The final saw around 35,000 fans converging at the EMS Corporation Stadium in Kozhikode. It is estimated that a total of 4.53 lakh people watched the matches at the stadiums in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Kozhikode and Malappuram. “Kerala is the Mecca of football in the country. It is indeed remarkable that we launched something like SLK to celebrate the sport we all love,” said Jo Paul Anchery, a former international footballer.
The league had been the result of meticulous planning for about three years, with the seeds planted step by step. “We built it up from scratch, scouting players through our various initiatives such as the Kerala Premier League, reviving the Chakolas Gold Trophy (a Kerala Youth Development Project involving U-14 boys), partnering with Spanish footballer Andres Iniesta, and many such efforts. It took two years to come up with the venues and franchises, build databases and to introduce the league to the people,” said SLK CEO Mathew Joseph.
Through the Chakolas Gold Trophy alone, the KFA has organised a staggering 832 matches, registered over 3,600 talented players, and brought together 131 teams. SLK is now considered the next step for youngsters.“SLK built a platform for promising young Malayali footballers to break into the professional sphere of the competitive sport. About 92 players, out of 150, in the league were from Kerala,” said Firoz Meeran, vice-chairman of Group Meeran.
“Our major motive was to build a football platform in Kerala, where homegrown talents find exposure to the bigger avenues of the game. By that yardstick, the inaugural season was a huge success with many players getting into our Santosh Trophy team, and ISL and I-League sides.”
Carrying on their success story to the next season, Super League Kerala is planning to introduce two new teams, six new venues, more sponsorships, and get an increased broadcast reach for the upcoming season. The inclusion of two more teams will see more matches, with the new season expected to be two months longer than the first.
The first edition was played on a home and away basis across four stadiums – JLN International Stadium in Kochi, Chandrasekharan Nair Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, EMS Corporation Stadium in Kozhikode and Payyanad Stadium in Manjeri. To increase fan engagement and home ground games, the Municipal Corporation stadiums in Kannur and Thrissur will see a facelift as the home venues of Kannur Warriors and Thrissur Magic. Besides, more stadiums across the state are set to be developed solely for football.
“For football stadiums, the spectators have to sit very close to the field to get a feel of maximum engagement with the game. Kerala doesn’t have many such stadiums. So, focusing on that will be our next major initiative,” Joseph said.
The organisers are also hoping to get the Ambedkar Stadium in Kochi as an exclusive football venue instead of the massive Nehru Stadium.
SLK also scored well outside the stadiums. The league grossed about 131 million impressions across online media platforms. Around 10 lakh viewers watched the games on Disney Hotstar in India and over 20,000 viewers on Manorama Max, which streamed the matches in the Middle East.
The inaugural season was streamed internationally on FIFA TV as well. The organisers claim that the viewership from outside Kerala was four times more than that from the state. For the next season, the organisers are planning to expand broadcasting in the Middle East where viewers mainly rely on IPTV, which does not contribute to the official numbers.
Another key takeaway from the first season was an increased participation of women and families in the stadiums. “Going forward, we are planning to create sections of galleries for women and install better sanitation facilities at our stadiums, to develop the project as a space suitable for the entertainment of families as well,” Firoz said.
Exclusive football venues
According to SLK CEO Mathew Joseph, for football stadiums, spectators have to sit very close to the field to get a feel of maximum engagement with the game. Since Kerala doesn’t have many such facilities, more stadiums across the state are set to be developed as exclusive football venues, with a seating capacity of 15,000 to 20,000. The organisers are also hoping to get the Ambedkar Stadium in Kochi as an exclusive football venue