While ISL Wants You to Be Fan of Indian Football, Sachin Tendulkar Ends His Association With Kerala Blasters
Kerala Blasters confirmed the same in a statement that Sachin Tendulkar has ended his association with the club.
It is Irony of sorts! While the organisers of Indian Super League (ISL) are promoting the upcoming season of the football league with a campaign ‘Fan Banna Padega’, legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar has ended his association with Kerala Blasters Football Club (KBFC). Kerala Blasters, the two-time runners-up, is one of the teams in the ISL. The franchise confirmed the same in a statement. Though it is not known why Tendulkar has sold his stakes. Sachin Tendulkar Ends Partnership with Kerala Blasters
"Sachin has been a great support and we thank him for his immense contribution to KBFC. He will forever be a member of the Yellow Army. As it has been, we will continue to uphold and take forward, the spirit of the sport, spirit of the fans and the spirit of Kerala," the statement said.
"The existing 80 per cent shareholders of KBFC comprising of IQuest, Chiranjeevi and Allu Arvind have entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Sachin Tendulkar's 20 percent stake in the club. Any other news regarding the shareholding is purely speculative in nature,” it added. ISL 2018/19: A Piece of My Heart Will Always Beat for Kerala Blasters, Says Sachin Tendulkar
Meanwhile, ISL has started a campaign ahead of the 18/19 season of the league. The campaign is titled, ‘Fan Banna Padega’. “It's time to take football in India to new heights. But before we do that, #FanBannaPadega!” reads the description of the promotional video on video.
Here's ISL 2018-19 Promotional Video
Tendulkar's association with Kerala Blasters began with the first edition in 2014. The club finished as runners-up in the inaugural edition. In the second edition, the team did not qualify for the finals and finished eighth. In 2016, Kerala Blasters again finished as runners-up and in the last edition of ISL, the club ended on sixth and did not qualify for the final. ISL 2019: ATK to Host Kerala Blasters in Tournament Opener on September 29, No Doubleheaders This Season
The 2018/19 edition of ISL begins from September 29. This will be the fifth season of the league. For the first time, ISL will introduce a mid-season break. Indian football team will participate in the AFC Asian Cup in January 2019 and with top footballers on national duty, ISL will see a break. The first half of the season will end in December while the second will begin only after the AFC Asian Cup 2019.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 16, 2018 07:45 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).