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CM Himanta Biswa Sarma unveils 131st Durand Cup Trophies in Assam

CM Himanta Biswa Sarma unveils 131st Durand Cup Trophies in Assam

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma unveiled the three Durand Cup trophies in a glittering ceremony at a city hotel on Thursday.

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131st Durand Cup Trophies 131st Durand Cup Trophies

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma unveiled the three Durand Cup trophies in a glittering ceremony at a city hotel on Thursday. The 134-year old iconic Durand Cup football tournament will be hosted by the state for the very first time and as part of a Trophy Tour involving five-cities.

Guwahati, the venue for 10 Group D games, was chosen as the first stop.

Sarma taking to Twitter wrote, “I urge all sports enthusiasts in Assam and NE to enjoy the Durand Cup matches. We shall arrange special buses for spectators. My gratitude to Indian Army for selecting Guwahati among 5 cities in the country to host the first 10 Group D matches of the prestigious tournament.”

“Glad to unveil 3 trophies of 134-year-old Durand Cup, Asia’s oldest football tournament, to be held in Assam for the first time from Aug 17 to Sept 4 at Guwahati under the aegis of  @adgpi & GoA. 20 teams from across the country, including 11 ISL teams, will participate,” he further added.

The century old tournament is getting bigger and better this year with 20-top teams of the country, including all 11 teams from the top division Indian Super League (ISL) participating, up from 16-teams last year. The matches in Guwahati will be held at the Indira Gandhi Athletic stadium in the city from August 17th to September 4th, 2022.

The Durand Cup (a rolling trophy and the original prize), the Shimla Trophy (also a rolling trophy and first given by the residents of Shimla in 1904) and the President’s Cup (for permanent keep and first presented by Dr. Rajendra Prasad, India’s first President, in 1956) are on a five-city tour.

It was flagged off from Kolkata on July 19, 2022 and after stationing in Guwahati for two days will proceed to Imphal in Manipur, the first time hosts. It will then proceed to Jaipur, as for the first time the state of Rajasthan would be fielding a team and will then make a final stop at the home of the defending champions FC Goa before returning back to Kolkata on July 31st, 2022, the venue of the opening game on August 16th, 2022, as well as the Grand Finale on September 18th, 2022.

There will be a total of 47 games in the 131st Durand Cup edition, with both Guwahati and Imphal hosting 10-games of group C and group D each, even after all the seven knockout games are held in three West Bengal venues. The opening pool matches are slated to begin on August 16th at Kolkata’s Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan (VYBK) stadium, August 17th at Guwahati’s Indira Gandhi Athletic stadium and August 18th at Imphal’s Khuman Lampakh stadium. The Tournament will culminate with the Grand Finale scheduled on September 18, 2022, at VYBK.

Durand Cup is a symbol of India’s football history and culture, and is Asia’s oldest and the world’s third oldest football tournament, held between 16 top Indian football clubs across divisions. Organized by the Indian Armed Forces, the Durand Cup has been the breeding ground for India’s best footballing talent, over the years.

The inaugural edition happened in Shimla in 1888, when it started off as an Army Cup, open only to the British Indian Army troops in India, but soon opened up to civilian teams. Named after its founder, Sir Mortimer Durand, Foreign Secretary of British India from 1884 to 1894, the iconic tournament reached its 130th edition in 2021. Mohun Bagan and East Bengal have been the most successful teams, winning the tournament 16 times each.

Edited By: Priti Kalita
Published On: Jul 21, 2022