JOIN USJavier Ceppi, the tournament director for the 2017 U-17 FIFA World Cup, said on Tuesday that Bengaluru was still in contention to be selected as one of the venues for the showpiece event.
Talking at an event organised by the All India Football Association (AIFF) to mark their tie-up with the Sports Authority of India (SAI), Ceppie said that Bengaluru could still get the nod to be one of the venues of the 2017 event if the authorities showed progress in redeveloping the Bangalore Football Stadium or the Sree Kanteerava stadium.
“We have not ruled out Bengaluru yet. They are still one of the venues in our provisional list. So, if the authorities here can show us some progress by January 2016, they can still be one of the venues,” he said.
The Karnataka State Football Association had wanted to rebuild the Bangalore Football Stadium for the event and had planned to invite tenders for the work so that it could be readied on time for the event. While that remains a concern the Kanteerava Stadium could also be considered as a venue if KSFA goes for it.
Ceppi confirmed that Kolkata, Guwahati, Mumbai and Kochi were shortlisted as the provisional venues, while other cities still in the running where Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune, New Delhi and Goa.