Bengaluru: Football is certainly the flavour of the month in India. The U-17s are the cynosure of everyone’s eyes at the World Cup, while the Indian senior team are making a steady climb towards being an Asian force. Everyone’s taking notice of our emerging prowess – both in terms of football talent as well as an exponentially growing and ardent fan base – none more so than the Premier League. England’s top-flight competition, viewed by over 900 million people world over, has slowly made inroads into the hearts and minds of club fans in the country since 2001 and will commemorate 25 years of existence in the city with footballing extravaganza like none other.
40,000 football-crazy fans of various club allegiances will unite to uphold the spirit of the game in all its unbridled glory at the Premier League Live fan park this weekend, with a stadium-like live-screening experience of matches to top off all the fan activities. It’s not every day that you get to see the trophy that has been lifted by the likes of John Terry, Patrick Viera and Wayne Rooney, but club loyalists were fortunate to come down to the offices of Deccan Chronicle to learn of the history and tradition attached to it. Introduced by its guardians and sole companions in Premier League trophy ambassadors John Cochrane and Roger Smith, they take great pride in what they’ve termed as the best job in the world.
“We take great pleasure bringing it to places and see the reaction that it brings from people. It’s priceless,” said a beaming Cochrane. “We’re travelling with the trophy three-fourths of the year, and we’ve never received a reception like we have in India. It’s my first time in Bangalore and it’s been absolutely fantastic,” added his colleague Smith. The fan park has previously been held in Mumbai in 2015 to much fanfare. The rags-to-riches story Aizawl FC’s I-league winning season earlier this year has been popularly alluded to Leicester City’s own fairytale triumph in the 2015-16 season, further highlighting the prominence of the Premier League in a modern-day context. Perhaps it’s another reason why they’ve chosen to come back here to honour their roots.
Of course, the real sheen behind the two-day event are the legends of the game who play their part in the festivities. Premier League all-time top-scorer Alan Shearer, who has claimed that football in India is on the cusp of a revolution, will lead a line-up that includes Arsenal icon Robert Pires, Liverpool forward John Barnes, Manchester City duo Shay Given and Paul Dickov, along with match-day program favourites like Manish Bhasin, Don Hutchinson and Leroy Rosenoir.
Indian audiences will clamour to interact with these superstars in the larger context of Manchester United taking on Liverpool. In a world where about one in four Manchester United fans is an Indian, it’s not surprising that India looks forward to weaving its mark on the rich tapestry of the Premier League.
