It’s a historic event, as India is hosting a FIFA women’s tournament for the first time. It’s the seventh edition of the U-17 Women’s World Cup (WWC). The inaugural edition was staged in New Zealand, in 2008, while the only time it was held in Asia was in 2016 when Jordan hosted the meet.
Sixteen nations have qualified for the competition through regional competitions, while debutants India earned their spot by virtue of being hosts. China and Japan are the other representatives from Asia.
The USA won the 2022 Concacaf U-17 Women’s Championship in emphatic fashion, while Canada and Mexico also qualified from North America. Nigeria, along with tournament first-timers Morocco and Tanzania, came through from Africa, while France, Germany and Spain earned their berths through European qualifiers. New Zealand punched their ticket from Oceania, while Brazil, Chile and Colombia clinched World Cup spots from South America.
The 16 nations, drawn into four groups of four teams each, are playing at three venues — Bhubaneswar, Goa and Navi Mumbai. The top two finishers in each group will advance to the quarterfinals.
The most visible and tangible change that the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Bhubaneswar is likely to bring about is the significant development and upgrading of venues and facilities. Kalinga Stadium, the main venue, and the training grounds have undergone major renovations to bring them on a par with international standards.
There was a strong emphasis on making the facilities athlete-friendly, fan-friendly and media-friendly. The impact of the upgraded infrastructure will be one of the key takeaways from the tournament. World-class training facilities would be available to players from across Odisha, which did not exist earlier.
Bhubaneswar has been considered to be a sleeping giant of football for many years. The selection of Odisha capital as one of the venues for FIFA U-17 WWC and unprecedented investment into the game will provide a much-needed boost to Odisha football.
Hosting the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup (twice) and ongoing FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in a span of five years gives Bhubaneswar a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to establish its reputation, project brand image and enhance its competitive identity.
Unfortunately, the brand value of Bhubaneswar was ignored in showcasing it due to absence of its name as host during hockey events. Perhaps the legacy of FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup will help Bhubaneswar witness some level of transformation in urban infrastructure while FIFA U-17 WWC legacy will benefit the state capital reaching out to schools with football and the city with facilities of playground.
In recent years, a rebranding and re-positioning of strategy has sought to promote an image of Odisha as India’s Best Kept Secret, a sunrise state, young minds and modern, and privileged natural beauty to attract new investments. The objective was to project Bhubaneswar with new attributes, such as a strong economy, innovation and sustainability, while strengthening the visibility characteristics for which the state was already known.
Football has arguably taken its rightful place in the hearts of Bhubaneswar residents as the second sport of choice along with hockey, only after cricket. This World Cup will certainly boost Bhubaneswar’s brand value across the globe because of its name visibility. Its presentation of being a sports city will get a further boost.
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