Odisha FC has announced that it has signed a three-year International Club Partnership deal with the Premier League side Watford FC. This contract will particularly benefit both sides and will cover all aspects of the sport and business.
Watford FC who plays in a much more competitive league and knows more about the insights of football will allow their coaches to help the Indian side to set up a youth system and the players of Odisha FC will also get a chance to train with Watford’s first team and/or academy team.
Along with helping and supporting each other in their individual youth systems including scouting and training of emerging footballers, they will work together and promote different grassroots programs as well. The club has also decided to work together towards the improvement of women’s football across India and will host friendly matches for the women’s side of both clubs.
Moreover, Odisha FC will get a challenging opportunity to travel and train at Watford as a part of the pre-season training and will also play friendly matches in England.
All the technical aspects will be covered by both the clubs together and they will be interfering with the selection of players, the appointment of coaching and support staff, refining tactical and technical aspects of the game among others for the individual first teams.
They will also be looking forward to increasing their marketing and social media activities which will increase fan engagement for both sides.
Explaining more about the partnership, Odisha FC’s Club President Mr Raj Athwal said, “We are excited and proud to announce a unique partnership with English Premier League club Watford FC. With both clubs looking to grow their brands globally, the partnership provides a unique platform to not only share best practices in all areas of our club but enhance the development of future players.”
“We are excited at the prospect of working with Watford FC’s coaches with a view to establishing a residential academy in Odisha, providing a conveyer belt of footballers who will one day proudly adorn the club colors and, as part of their development, have the opportunity to train at Watford’s esteemed academy too.”
He added, “For the Odisha supporters, there is the exciting prospect of potentially loaning players from Watford FC and, equally, players from Odisha FC can be scouted to play in the English leagues.”
Watford FC’s Commercial Director Mr Paul O’Brien said of the partnership, “This is something really quite different and we love to get involved in new things that provide really different experiences for the club and our staff.“
“Partnering with Odisha FC gives us a chance to get a real insight into football’s global appeal and affords us a great chance to share learnings with a similarly ambitious club.”
“Learning more about India and exploring its cultural richness and passion for sport is something we’re all looking forward to doing right away.”