New Delhi: The most talented of Delhi’s Under-16 football players will get another chance to fulfill their once-in-a-lifetime dream of training with Manchester United, when action in the second edition of the Airtel Rising Stars soccer talent hunt kicks off in seven cities, including Delhi, starting August 2013.
The second edition of India’s largest under-16 soccer talent hunt, in association with Manchester United was launched in Delhi on Tuesday in the presence of ‘Legend’ Gary Pallister and Mohit Beotra (Chief Brand Officer – Bharti Airtel, India) and will see the top 64 soccer playing schools from seven cities vying for top honours, at the end of which 11 of the most talented players will be picked for a week-long training stint in Manchester.
The 3-months’ long Inter-Schools Tournament-cum-talent hunt will be conducted in seven cities (Delhi, Mumbai, Goa, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Guwahati) with the support of the respective State and District Football Associations.
The 64 top soccer playing schools will play amongst themselves, with the winning school in each city presented with the Airtel Cup. The best three players from each city will be picked for the final selection trials. The best goalkeeper from each city will also be picked and put through their paces, following which two will be shortlisted for the final selection trials, which will be held in Goa.
Besides players from the top soccer playing schools, individual players also stand a chance of being picked for the final selection trials. Those aspiring of the opportunity can upload videos of their soccer playing skills and the top 50 videos from each city will be shortlisted for a live audition. From these, the most talented player will get an opportunity to be a part of the final selection trials.
The 30 players in the final selection trials will train for five days under coaches of the Manchester United Soccer Schools (MUSS) in Goa and will be tested on all parameters (including physical attributes, individual skills, match situations and their performances in actual matches) before 11 of the best players are chosen to travel to Manchester for a week and train alongside the Manchester United - Under 21 team.