When the New Year dawns, in less than a week, the hope of a new look for Sri Lankan football or soccer as it is sometimes called, appears at the end of the tunnel. The proposed new ‘Super League’, the first ever world class professional football tournament, in this country, is set to kick off at the end of January 2021.
Sri Lanka’s Football has taken many a big blow for decades on the World and Asian stages and that too due to many reasons. At different intervals, many administrators have made efforts to uplift the game but all their efforts have been futile.
It appears that Sri Lanka Football needs a fresh start, at every level, if it is to make its mark on the World stage and those governing the internationally popular sport need to take note of this without changing the course from time to time or trying to patch up the damages as short-term solutions.
Jaswar Umar, who took office as the General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Football Federation three years ago, has a different explanation for the present crisis. He believes that Sri Lanka Football can bounce back very quickly by adopting fundamental changes to the administration and to the national football structure. A very promising change he has initiated is the creation of a ‘Super League’, the first ever professional football tournament in the country.
Jaswar passionately believes that the Super League will start a new football culture in the country and become popular among all stakeholders. Many new world class policies and practices are in the making for this new competition, which will change the way football is managed and governed in the country.
Participating clubs, players, officials, fans, commercial partners, and many others will experience a new methodology when dealing with a Super League Competition.
“Super League – is not just another competition, it’s an industry”. This is the mantra Jaswar always recites, every time we meet him. He has valid logical reasons to make this statement. ‘Super League’ has already become a source of employment for more than 300 football players. This means a lot for an amateur player to focus on playing the game while earning a decent salary each month. There is also a big demand for qualified and talented coaches for the super league clubs. Additionally, many related businesses will be benefited from the ‘Super League’. Food suppliers, jersey or apparel retailers, transporters, footwear manufacturers, event organizers and merchandising shops are among the beneficiaries. It is believed that the investments from all ten clubs and from the organizers, will total nearly three hundred million rupees in the first season. This is supposed to be the biggest budget for any football event, if the plans go well.
The FFSL General Secretary further stated that with the inauguration of the ‘Super League’, many changes will take place in football at all levels. For instance, football academies, football schools and clubs from villages will get exposure to market talented players to the ‘Super League’ clubs. Therefore, more talented players will emerge from different parts of the country. The ‘Super League’ clubs will start their own elite academies. Lower-level clubs will compete even harder to qualify for ‘Super League’ slots. This will create a healthy competition, Jaswar explained.
He also says that football will move forward in a more technical way. More sports science will be brought into the ‘Super League’ structure once the first season begins. Players will be monitored and analyzed in a more scientific way. This will allow players to correct their shortcomings and improve their performances. Coaches and Referees will receive match data to analyze their performance which will be a key aspect to elevate the standards of the game.
For the general public, there will be great entertainment every week in watching and supporting their favourite club. Already, some fan clubs of certain teams have started and are going viral on social media. With this crowd pulling entertainment event, more sponsors and partners will come forward to support football in total. Time will bring top football players to the limelight and they will be highlighted as heroes in the public domain.
This will increase the value and recognition of the players, unlike before. Young football players will imitate the star players and this spark will change the way future football is played in the country.
Finally, the Super League will make a huge impact on many areas and there is no doubt, with this great initiative, we can dream of a new look for Sri Lanka Football in the near future.
