FIFA U-17 World Cup: AIFF to make logistical arrangements for parents of players

Courtesy: IANS

New Delhi: The parents of India U-17 football team members will be able to watch their children play in the World Cup as the All India Football Federation (AIFF) today said it will arrange all logistical arrangements for them to come to Delhi.

Most of the players in the Indian team were from poor background and their parents have expressed lack of money to even buy air tickets to be in New Delhi to watch their children play.

"With five more days left for the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 to kick-off, Indian U-17 World Cup team players on Sunday thanked AIFF for arranging all logistical arrangements for their parents to watch them play live at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi," the AIFF said in a statement.

Captain Amarjit's full family to cheer him

India team captain Amarjit Kiyam's confidence is set to get a boost during the World Cup as his full family will be here to cheer him.

Amarjit belongs to a poor family in a village in Thoubal district of Manipur and his parents have expressed their inability to buy air tickets for them to travel to Delhi to watch their son play in U-17 World Cup beginning on October 6.

But financial help has come in from some quarters in the state after former India captain Renedy Singh took the initiative in this regard.

Besides an MLA, some private business houses have also promised financial help to all the eight players from Manipur who have been named in the 21-member Indian team.

Amarjit's elder brother Umakanta Singh said he will bring his parents and his sister also to Delhi to watch the India captain play in the FIFA U-17 World Cup.

"An MLA (from Sagolband) have given us Rs 20,000 in hand yesterday when he came to our house along with Renedy. He (the MLA) is going to give the same amount to all the eight players from Manipur who are in the Indian team," Umakanta told PTI.

"Then, Imphal-based Eastern Motors will also give us some fund and my parents have gone to Imphal today (to collect the money). Moreover, through Renedy, Mumbai-based Tata Trust has also promised funds to all the players," he added.

Umakanta said all the four members of his family will travel to Delhi.

"My parents will have language problem in Delhi and so I will have to be there. We cannot leave my sister alone at home and so she will also have to accompany us," said Umakanta, who himself is a footballer and was with St Stephen's Academy in Chandigarh.

Reports have said that the Manipur government has announced Rs 5 lakh each to all the eight players from Manipur but Umakanta said that his family has not been communicated officially on this.

"I read this in the newspaper but we have not received any official communication from the state government, orally or in writing," he said.

The All India Football Federation also announced today that it will make all logistical arrangements for the parents of all the Indian team members to come to Delhi.

The parents of Amarjit's first cousin Jeakson Singh, who is another member of the Indian team, will also be in Delhi during the U-17 World Cup, according to Umakanta.

"Jeakson's father has been having health problems (suffered a stroke a few years ago) but he wants to go to see his son play in the U-17 World Cup. So, his (Jeakson's) parents will also come to Delhi. I will be bringing all of them to Delhi," he said.

India face United States of America on October 6 in their opening Group A match before taking on Colombia (October 9) and Ghana (October 12). All the India's group matches will be played at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here.