Anantapur: M. Anusha, a football player from Anantapur district’s Atmakur, an interior part of the Rayalaseema region, has earned the distinction of being a member of the @indianfootball Senior Women’s squad for an international friendly against the Maldives.
The 17-year-old with springy feet has been picked after sweating and fighting it out for 20 days as a member of the U-20 probable’s squad in Bangalore. Her journey began in 2021 at the Rural Development Trust (RDT) Sports Village, which is of international standard.
The RDT programme, led by its director Manchu Ferrer has trained not only Anusha in football skills but several others. The training meets both the national and international standards. Ferrer is passionate about girls picking up football. There is an Under-17 tournament going on right now, wherein girls are vying for the Inspire Cup at the Anantapur Sports Village.
The tourney will conclude on January 9. 216 young female footballers from 12 teams from across India are participating in this 4th edition of the tournament, organised by the Anantapur Sports Academy in collaboration with the LaLiga Foundation. The first edition of the Inspire Cup saw five teams from all over India participating in the tournament. That 12 teams are participating in the fourth edition is a testament to the Inspire Cup’s success.
India’s nutrition brand Fast&Up is the energy drink partner of the tournament, while the prize money partner is the Union Bank. The 12 teams taking part in the tournament are from Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Odisha and Karnataka.
Inspire Cup is the first step towards creating a quality competitive platform for girls’ football academies and clubs across India. The cup is not only a round-robin league and knockout tournament, it also emphasises on cultural exchanges among the participating young women by way of fun games and campfires.
Speaking about the tournament, Sai Krishna Pulluru, Director of Anantapur Sports Academy (ASA), said, “We are proud that players from previous editions have progressed to professional clubs and even represented India in various football tournaments.”
In 2023–24, the RDT-LaLiga partnership provided access to more than 2,700 children to play football through residential and grassroots programmes.
