“The love for games is still active within us but digitalized sports and the unavailability of space has suppressed it.’’ Says Mr. Vivekananda Revaiah, EXD Project’s Director.

Bangalore, 7^thAugust, 2018: EXDFive Rings, a self-contained township, organized a ‘Bangalore Soccer Talent Hunt’ in alliance with Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools as an EXD-Launchpad initiative, with the objective of identifying potential talent in the field of Soccer and contribute towards the sports fraternity.

EXD Project’s Director, Mr. Vivekananda Revaiah commented, “The love for games is still active within us but digitalized sports and the unavailability of space has suppressed it. In an era when most of the time was invested in physical activities, there were no physical and mental health concerns. However, with the sedentary lifestyle in today’s world, physical and mental health issues are on the rise. The ‘Bangalore Soccer Talent Hunt’ was our contribution to the identification of local talent along with the endorsement of a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle.”

Launchpad’s Pankaj Ojha said, “EXD’s Five Rings is the first and largest Sports City of Bangalore developed with the aim of integrating sports in everyday life. The ‘Bangalore Soccer Talent Hunt’ is abrilliant way to encourage youth to participate andenhance their skills under the best coaches. Sports is not just a game, it is a lifestyle and that is what EXD Five Rings stands for.”

Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools (BBFS) is an initiative by India’s longest serving football captain – Bhaichung Bhutia, offering football coaching through 24 training centers in 10 cities across the country. Catering to children in the age group of 5-15 years, BBFS delivers coaching experience under the guidance of senior coaches from Portugal through their partnership with ‘FootballBy Carlos Queiroz’(FBCQ)-the Portuguese football academy by Carlos Queiroz. But the distinctiveness of the
collaboration between EXD Five Rings and BBFS is the inclusion and training of participants regardless of their age.

Rahul Thomas, Co-Founder & CEO, Sporthood Bhainchung Bhutia Football Schools said, “About 20% of the students in our academy are from economically weaker backgrounds, so we know that while talent exists, their socio-economic background becomes an impediment. Our aim is to tap into the local talent to produce players of international standards.The ‘EXD Five Rings Bangalore Soccer Hunt’ provides us with a platform to achieve our aim.”Sporthood, the exclusive managing partner of BBFS in South India, is Bangalore’s largest network of neighbourhood sports centers that offers a wide variety of programs in football & badminton that cater to every individual, irrespective of age & gender.

The talent hunt will be conducted in 4 steps – Registration, Screening, Training and Finals. The registration will be online as well as offline process- via schools, residential societies, football clubs and academies. The screening will be conducted by BBFS and then the shortlisted candidates will be finally trained for finals by the same academy. On the day of the finals, selection of the top 21 performers by independent judges will ensure and they will be adopted by EXD Five Rings for training and facilities by Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools. The top 3 performers will be offered a chance to be a part of the prestigious iLeague- the men’s professional football league of India.