New Delhi: Football Delhi will host Group-1 of the 27th Senior Men’s National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy, scheduled to kickstart from December 23 to 3 at Dr Ambedkar Stadium and Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
Apart from host Delhi, a total of six teams including Karnataka, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Tripura and Ladakh will compete in Group-1 matches.
Delhi will play their first match against Tripura on December 23. This information was given by the Executive President of the Delhi Soccer Association (Football Delhi) Sharafatullah at a press conference here on Monday. Organising Secretary Rizwan-ul-Haq, Football Delhi General Secretary Akash Narula and Treasurer Liaquat Ali were also present on the occasion.
This time some changes have been made in the format to make the Santosh Trophy competition attractive, due to which teams from 36 states have been divided into six groups. The winners and runners-up of each group will qualify for the final round, while Railways, Services and the host team will play directly in the final round.
According to Delhi Soccer Association (Football Delhi) working president Sharafatullah, Delhi has staked claim to host the final round. He informed that the All India Football Federation (AIFF) is extending full cooperation to Delhi in hosting the tournament. The Delhi government had assured cooperation in the event but suddenly pulled back. In this situation, AIFF came forward for the success of the prestigious event.
The Organising Secretary Rizwan-ul-Haq said that after starting the campaign against Tripura, Delhi will play its second match against Ladakh. Three matches will be played on each day of the tournament.
Group-1 schedule:
Dec 23:
Ladakh vs Uttarakhand, 11:30 am, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Tripura vs Delhi, 12:30 PM, Dr. Ambedkar Stadium
Gujarat vs Karnataka, 2:30 PM, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Dec 25:
Uttarakhand vs Karnataka, 11:30 am, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Ladakh vs Delhi, 12:30 PM, Dr. Ambedkar Stadium
Tripura vs Gujarat, 2:30 PM, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Dec 27:
Ladakh vs Karnataka, 11:30 am, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Delhi vs Gujarat, 12:30 PM, Dr. Ambedkar Stadium
Uttarakhand vs Tripura, 2:30 PM, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Dec 29:
Karnataka vs Tripura, 11:30 am, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Delhi vs Uttarakhand, 12:30 PM, Dr Ambedkar Stadium
Ladakh vs Gujarat, 2:30 PM, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Dec 31:
Ladakh vs Tripura, 11:30 am, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Karnataka vs Delhi, 12:30 PM, Dr Ambedkar Stadium
Gujarat vs Uttarakhand, 2:30 PM, Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
–IANS