Kolkata : Underscoring the need for a comprehensive promotional campaign to ensure the success of next year’s U-17 World Cup, football’s global governing body FIFA has advised India to build up the event gradually and in phases starting six to eight months before the showpiece tourney begins in October 2017.
In an exclusive chat with IANS, Shaji Prabhakaran, FIFA’s regional development officer for South and Central Asia, said: “There is still time. But marketing the World Cup and promoting it should start six-eight months before the event. There has to be a comprehensive promotion.”
Prabhakaran said the build-up should be in phases initially with the intensity going up as the youth extravaganza appoaches.
“It should be in phases to start off with. There are discussions going on in full flow. We need to make sure fans are created. Promotion should be done in such a manner that it remains on the minds of the people, yet does not fizzle out by the time the World Cup is played. This is why it should start in phases and go up every week.”
Ticketing and promotion should go hand in hand, according to Prabhakaran.
Prabhakaran was part of the 13-member FIFA delegation which inspected and ratified all six venues – New Delhi, Navi Mumbai, Guwahati, Kolkata, Kochi and Goa – earlier this week. Along with the venues, four training pitches in each of them were also cleared.
