Khriezovonuo Lhoungu
A leisure trip to Nagaland and a chance meeting with a local football club may well turn advantageous for the state after what has transpired during this short visit. Ignacio Garcia, former head of management in Sponsorship and International Marketing for Atletico Madrid, one of Spain’s top football clubs, was here in Nagaland as part of his holiday destination. Being an avid follower of football wherever he goes, especially management aspects of clubs and teams; he was curious about the status of football in India and during his stopover at Kohima, he met with members of the Kohima Komets Academy. After taking note of the workings of the academy, he is positive about the possibility of a tie-up between the Kohima Komets Academy and Atletico Madrid. Once the deal is officially finalised, this will benefit not only Nagaland but the country as a whole as the door now opens for tie-ups with international football academies and organisations.
Being in the management field for over a decade, Garcia’s experience and credentials have been found to be very impressive. He is credited with the selling of international rights for Fernando Torres of Spain who currently plays for Chelsea FC, and was tour manager of Atletico Madrid in China and Holland. He has implemented sponsorships and portfolio management with several brand giants including Coca Cola, Nike and KIA. Seeing the potential of the football industry in Nagaland, and Kohima Komets in particular, he has shown keen interest in assisting with restructuring of the management team, role and duties and helping with sponsorship documents and connecting with football players and managers. He will also be working on initiating exchange programmes with top international football clubs in the coming years.
During a brief interaction with him, he spoke about his personal observations in India with regard to football and the clubs and management here in Nagaland. Talking about the Kohima Komets Academy, he said it is being headed by very good management team members who are quite clear on what they want and are working towards long term benefits not only for the club but for football in Nagaland as a whole. He said the expertise of those in management and the professional way in which the academy is being managed will put up the level of football in Nagaland and felt the state has a solid football base. Having watched practice sessions and a friendly match during his stay, he remarked that there are many players with the potential to go very far. He said Nagas are technically and tactically very good but need to improve their stamina and also put more effort in flexibility of movement. Having been to Sikkim before his trip here and meeting with the United Sikkim Club headed by Baichung Bhutia, he says these meetings have paved the way for the prospect of bringing expertise from outside and top international teams to play in India while also initiating the process for soccer schools across the country.
He observed that football in India will boom in the next 3 to 6 years and with the help of professional organisations and ventures, a lot of business can be done in this area even as early as within the next six months. Optimistic about the developments, he said now is the time for implementing business in the sports industry between India and Spain and hoped to meet with the AIFA to make the deals official. Garcia is currently the general manager of Basque Team, an NGO founded by the Basque Government with the goal of helping Basque Athletes to compete in Olympic Games. He had managed the Basque State Team as they participated in the London 2012 Paralympics.
This is just the beginning as far as professional management of a club goes and forging ties with reputed organisations is concerned, Nagaland has come a long way in its tryst with football which is still the most popular game for Nagas. While still basking in the glory of the precedent set by Dr. T. Ao decades back as captain of the Indian Football team at the Olympics, the dream of seeing our Naga players rubbing shoulders with players of international teams may just be possible in our lifetime. With this kind of professional help, exposure and the right contacts, the future of football in Nagaland looks set to reach the next level.
.JPG)
