Footballers' organisation to be formed

Kolkata:

India's leading football players have come together to form an organisation for the welfare of the players and the development of the game in the country. Former India goalkeeper Sumit Mukherjee would be the CEO of the organisation to be christened Football Players' Association of India. The birth of the FPA follows intense discussion among the country's star players, now training at the national camp organised ahead of India's AFC Asian Cup qualifying match against Saudi Arabia on August 16. The formal announcement of the formation of the FPA would be made on Sunday at the hotel where the campers are staying. Even before its foundation, the FPA has received a boost with AIFF president Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi welcoming it. The AIFF's stand is in stark contrast to that of the Indian Cricket Board, which is yet to recognise the Indian Cricket Players' Association formed in October 2002. "There will be surprises. Some people, who many thought will not be with us, will be present during the formation," said Sumit Mukherjee. This is the third attempt to form a footballers' organisation in the country. The earlier associations in the 1980s and 1990s had become defunct without making much headway. (PTI)