Lucknow to host mega football match between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal on Sept 2

Lucknow, Aug 29 (UNI) A mega football match is all set to step onto this City of Nawabs when the two traditional rivals of Indian football, Mohun Bagan SG and East Bengal FC, to cross swords at iconic KD Singh Babu Stadium on Monday, September 2, 2024.

The two biggest names in Indian football had met each other several times in other parts of the country, but never had an opportunity to fight it out in Lucknow.

East Bengal, in its 104 years of rich history, never played in the Uttar Pradesh capital. Mohun Bagan, established in 1889, will take the pitch in Lucknow after 69 years.

The only time they played there was on August 30, 1955, when they drew an exhibition match 1-1 with the Lucknow XI.

Taking this opportunity, the All India Football Federation has initiated a plan to distribute 96,455 footballs in 75 districts in 21,551 schools through Navodaya Vidyalaya in collaboration with the Union Ministry of Education.

If preparing a top-class football pitch for the match was an issue, then Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath took all the initiative to solve it and present the ground at the KD Singh Stadium for this kind of unique Derby, the AIFF said on Thursday.

The promotional match is organised by the All India Football Federation in association with the Government of Uttar Pradesh and the Uttar Pradesh Football Sangh. The aim is to help develop and promote football across the huge state of Uttar Pradesh.

AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey met Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on August 8 in Lucknow, to discuss the promotion of football in the state and the proposed match. Within three weeks, the renovation of K D Singh Babu Stadium was done at war footing and the stadium was ready for the big show.

Deggie Cardozo, the head coach of Mohun Bagan, said, “This is a great initiative by the AIFF President to popularise football in Uttar Pradesh. I hope this match will inspire more youngsters to take up football, and in the future, we get a lot more quality players from UP.”

Bino George, East Bengal head coach, said, “We often stress on grassroots development, and it becomes all the more important for a state like Uttar Pradesh. It is such a big state with so many districts, that if we can popularise football there even a bit, we could see so many talented players coming through. I really appreciate this initiative by the AIFF to bring such a big match to Lucknow.”

The city of Lucknow is also known as the “Constantinople of the East” because of its rich and diverse culture. It has also been a sporting City for many years and produced some sensational sporting heroes: hockey legend KD Singh ‘Babu’, star athlete Henry Rebello and champion shuttler Syed Modi, to name a few.

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