AIFF Media Team

NEW DELHI: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) and Lakshmibai College of Physical Education (LNCPE), Trivandrum, on Tuesday, February 14, 2023, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to work together to bring about positive developments in several key areas of the beautiful game.

The collaboration, the first of its kind between the premier institution in Kerala and AIFF, would mainly in the areas like Refereeing Development (Centre for Referees Excellence), Coach Education, Research and Sports Science.

The historic MoU was signed by the Federation Secretary General Dr Shaji Prabhakaran and Dr G Kishore, Principal and Regional Head SAI LNCPE Trivandrum.

This is in line with the Strategic Roadmap announced by the AIFF as part of ‘Vision 2047’. As per the Roadmap, five COREs for referees’ development will be established across the country. The launch of the first CORE had already been announced in January this year when the Lakshmibai National Institute of Physical Education (LNIPE), Gwalior, and the football federation signed a MoU.

Dr Prabhakaran, Secretary General of the Federation, commented on the latest development, saying, “Collaboration with LNCPE SAI Trivandrum is in line with our strategic roadmap. This partnership will be of tremendous value to Indian football, as the institute has the right facilities and resources to contribute to the development of referees, coaches, sports science, and other allied areas.

“We have to make every effort to pool the resources available in India for creating a solid base for football development, so this kind of collaboration is very important for the growth of football and building capacity in our football landscape,” Dr Prabhakaran added.

Kerala Football Association General Secretary Anilkumar, said: “It is a good development for football in India as LNCPE Trivandrum is one of the prominent institutions in India having the best facilities for football, which we always utilise for the development of football in Kerala.”