By IANS
New Delhi : A two-member team of the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) ad-hoc committee will help the All India Football Federation (AIFF) with valuable inputs for the nation’s inaugural Professional League, said a top official here Monday.
“The officials will visit all the clubs and venues for the inaugural Professional League. They will take into account whether all clubs fulfil the criteria for the Professional League set by the AFC,” said AIFF general secretary Alberto Colaco.
The AFC has formed the Pro League ad-hoc committee to enhance the level of promotion and development of professional football in Asia.
As part of this move, two members of the committee comprising deputy chairman Tokuaki Suzuki and chief officer Satoshi Saito are inspecting all the clubs and the venues ahead of the India’s Professional League, which starts Nov 24.
“Their visit is very important. Since we are launching this Professional League, now our clubs will be eligible for the AFC Professional League as well,” said Colaco.
The ad-hoc committee is also undertaking a major reform of the Champions League starting from 2009 to make it a more attractive competition.
“The two-member committee’s inputs will also help us to kick-start the league in a proper way and also make it successful. They will conduct an intensive research on the football leagues of all the 22 AFC member countries,” said Colaco.
The countries implementing successful professional leagues would be chosen to participate in the restructured AFC Champions League.