27 January,2025 03:49 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
The 2024 champions pose for a photo with the DSC trophy
The second edition of the Dream Sports Championship (DSC) was announced on Monday, with an aim to build on the successful launch of its pan-India U-17 Club Football tournament last year.
Set to begin in February 2025, the championship will be hosted across six cities, featuring Regional Rounds and a National Final, providing a platform for young footballers to showcase their skills.
In another exciting development, this year's tournament will also include a girls U-17 Championship at the National Finals, underscoring the foundation's efforts to promote diversity in sports at the grassroots level. The tournament will also help AIFF identify potential youth talent for the Indian national team.
The tournament will maintain its strategic two-phase regional structure across six key football centres. The first phase will run from February 2-8, 2025, featuring competitive matches in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Bengaluru. This will be followed by the second phase from February 10-14, 2025, which will take place in Guwahati and Goa.
The National Finals will be scheduled between April 5-17, 2025, in Goa, where top teams from each regional round will compete for the prestigious DSC trophy. This expanded structure serves as a platform for identifying and nurturing India's emerging football talent, providing aspiring young footballers with exposure to high-level competitive football.
The tournament's first edition set remarkable benchmarks with 37 participating teams, including youth sides from six ISL and three I-League clubs. The inaugural championship witnessed 261 goals scored by 123 unique goalscorers, showcasing the depth of talent nationwide. With 792 registered players averaging 15.85 years of age, the tournament demonstrated its commitment to youth development at the crucial U17 level.
The Dream Sports Championship is expected to broaden its scope to include sports like Table Tennis, Badminton and Hockey as part of the next phase of its growth.
