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The Goa Football Association has floated an ITB (Invitation to Bid) for teams seeking direct entry to play in the Goa Professional League, the top tier League of Goan football. The Goa Professional League currently has 11 teams with each team playing each other in a double leg system. For the past two years, the format was changed to a Championship/Relegation League format due to the prevailing Covid-19 conditions and more recently due to a delayed start in the season on account of the late elections.
The bid document which will be available at the GFA office from today, June 25 onwards will have a two tier bidding system. The first category will have a minimum bid amount of Rs. 30 lakhs for clubs who are registered under the Societies Act 1860. The second category of bids will have a Corporate entry bid for clubs registered with the Companies Act 2014. In this category, the GFA has fixed a minimum bid amount of Rs. 50 lakhs. In a first for the Association, corporates from outside Goa can also tie up with local clubs in Goa and table a bid. This could potentially see participation of many reserve ISL teams or academies from outside the state who potentially seek more match time for their teams.
“The Executive Committee decided to think out of the box this year. We are working hard to improve the standard of Goa’s flagship football tournament. We are hopeful of at least two teams participating in the League through direct entry this season. We are working towards making the GPL a better product which will help in attracting more eyeballs, sponsors, better players and eventually enhance the overall standard of the League which will serve as a platform for players to get scouted by bigger clubs,” said Dr. Caitano Fernandes, President of the Goa Football Association.
All the new teams will have to adhere to the GFA Club Licensing Criteria, which makes it mandatory for clubs to fulfill the Infrastructure, Sporting. Legal, Financial and Administration Criteria.
“The new teams which will gain a direct entry in the League will also have to invest on Grassroots and Youth Development which will be something additional to be fulfilled compared to other Professional league clubs. This we feel will be crucial to building Goa’s talent for the future. We need more investments in grassroots and youth development to remain competitive in the future,” said Anthony Pango, Senior Vice President and Chairman of the Competitions Committee.
The Goa Professional League is scheduled to begin from August as per the GFA Calendar. The League will be broadcast on FanCode as per the existing contract.
