AIFF’s Asian Cup bid details published; 11 cities, 12 stadiums and 318.65 crore outlay

The Asian Football Confederation on Monday published the details of India's bid for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup hosting rights along with those of the other contending nations; Iran, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. All India Football Federation’s (AIFF) 177-page bid book involves eleven host cities, 12 venues including a brand new stadium in Navi Mumbai, pandemic insurance in cue with the new normal, an estimated budget of 318.65 crore and the vision to ‘connect Indian fans with Asian football’.

Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Goa, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Navi Mumbai, New Delhi, Pune and Thiruvananthapuram are the 11 host cities. All of them will have one venue each except Navi Mumbai which will have two, the DY Patil Stadium and the yet-to-be constructed Panvel-Khargar Stadium. Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium is the recommendation for the final match while New Delhi, Kochi, Navi Mumbai and Thiruvananthapuram are the choices for the two semi-finals.

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As far as the monetary aspect is concerned, 92.20 crore is the estimated budget for stadium restructuring and redevelopment, 55 crore for safety and security while the Local Organising Committee will have 57 crore for operational costs. The estimated budget for Transportation is 24 crore while that for Knowledge Sharing and Official events is 25 and 25.25 crore respectively. The total estimate also includes the cost of hosting the 2026 Asian U-26 Championships which is the precursor to the Asian Cup. The AIFF also aims to generate 75.81 crore from ticket sales and a further USD 100 million from domestic and international tourism associated with the event.

The bid book also has mention of the 2017 U-17 Men’s World Cup which was a huge success. It states the AIFF’s plans to initiate more sustainable development programmes for the sport in India and quotes the Mission XI Million program which ‘connected 11 million children with the beautiful game’ as precedence. The document goes on to state that ‘the 2027 AFC Asian Cup would build on the AIFF’s proven strategies and be the perfect platform to take Indian and Asian football to never-seen-before heights’.

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With respect to backing from the government, the AIFF claims that it ‘is working closely with’ and ‘has full and unwavering support of the government and top state leadership’. Interestingly, it also features England and Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi saying ‘playing in India is unreal’ as part of a testimonial for previously held tournaments in the country, in his case, the 2017 U-17 World Cup. The comprehensive document also states AIFF’s confidence that they ‘will deliver the event in an innovative, unique and world-class manner’ and their intention to ‘further promote mass participation and develop our football teams’.