A few months ago, a close friend of mine,
Hemant Sharma, mentioned the idea of the Global Institute of Sports Business
buying a team in the upcoming adidas Creators Premier League (ACPL). To be
honest, at the time I didn’t give it too much thought as I’ve not come across
many Sports Management education institutes that have purchased and managed
football clubs in city-based leagues. Then, the more we discussed this idea
internally, we realized that it was brilliant – the perfect way to give some
our aspiring sports club CEOs a first-hand experience of running a team.
Hemant Sharma, mentioned the idea of the Global Institute of Sports Business
buying a team in the upcoming adidas Creators Premier League (ACPL). To be
honest, at the time I didn’t give it too much thought as I’ve not come across
many Sports Management education institutes that have purchased and managed
football clubs in city-based leagues. Then, the more we discussed this idea
internally, we realized that it was brilliant – the perfect way to give some
our aspiring sports club CEOs a first-hand experience of running a team.
We were clear that we wanted to purchase a team in the Women’s league vs
Men’s. Mumbai happens to be the home of
some incredible female footballers and we wanted to use this team to give them
a platform to build their profile. We
were also clear that although winning the league was a major priority, we also
wanted to focus on educating our players around sports management topics as
well contribute to society off the pitch.
Sounds idealistic, I know, however I honestly believe that every human
being wants to make a difference to others, it’s just that some people are not
able to clearly see the opportunity unless it is created for them – so buying a
team in the ‘creators’ league seemed like a perfect way to do this.
So exactly one month after the initial
conversation with Hemant, the GISB Blue Flames was officially born.
conversation with Hemant, the GISB Blue Flames was officially born.
Once you have completed the process of coming
up with a hopefully not too cheesy team name and designing a cool and not
copied logo, apparently the next step in owning a team in the adidas Creators
Premier League is to pick your players.
So my colleagues and I were invited to the Taj Lands End Hotel in
Bandra, Mumbai to take part in the player auction.
up with a hopefully not too cheesy team name and designing a cool and not
copied logo, apparently the next step in owning a team in the adidas Creators
Premier League is to pick your players.
So my colleagues and I were invited to the Taj Lands End Hotel in
Bandra, Mumbai to take part in the player auction.
Initially I saw the player auction as an
opportunity to spend some quality off campus time with the rest of the GISB
management and network with a few of the other team owners. Since I didn’t have much of an idea about
exactly which players we should bid for, I didn’t plan to take the whole
auction aspect of the event too seriously. But then upon arrival, my
competitive side took over. Once I realized how serious everyone was about the auction,
I got serious too. First step was to send the player list to a few of my
friends who have owned or managed ACPL teams in the past so that they could
tell me who we should bid for and for how much.
Then I compared my notes with the notes of our coach Josh as well as our
Team Manager / GISB Student Poonam.
opportunity to spend some quality off campus time with the rest of the GISB
management and network with a few of the other team owners. Since I didn’t have much of an idea about
exactly which players we should bid for, I didn’t plan to take the whole
auction aspect of the event too seriously. But then upon arrival, my
competitive side took over. Once I realized how serious everyone was about the auction,
I got serious too. First step was to send the player list to a few of my
friends who have owned or managed ACPL teams in the past so that they could
tell me who we should bid for and for how much.
Then I compared my notes with the notes of our coach Josh as well as our
Team Manager / GISB Student Poonam.
The next 2 hours were a blur of small victories
and gentle blows as we tried to fill up our 11 player roster with the best
players possible. During the entire draft, I kept thinking about the NBA Draft,
NFL Draft, IPL Auction and, even the, ISL Auction that used to take place. I was
so anxious during the auction and we weren’t even talking about spending real
money, I can’t imagine how the Owners, General Managers and Coaches feel leading
up to, during and immediately after a professional draft or auction.
and gentle blows as we tried to fill up our 11 player roster with the best
players possible. During the entire draft, I kept thinking about the NBA Draft,
NFL Draft, IPL Auction and, even the, ISL Auction that used to take place. I was
so anxious during the auction and we weren’t even talking about spending real
money, I can’t imagine how the Owners, General Managers and Coaches feel leading
up to, during and immediately after a professional draft or auction.
The rest of the evening post the auction was spent
celebrating the success of GISB, bantering with the other team owners and solving
all of the challenges that the Indian football industry is facing while downing
multiple scotch & sodas thanks to the open bar courtesy of IT Magia and the
Taj Lands End.
celebrating the success of GISB, bantering with the other team owners and solving
all of the challenges that the Indian football industry is facing while downing
multiple scotch & sodas thanks to the open bar courtesy of IT Magia and the
Taj Lands End.
All in all it was a memorable evening that set
the stage for what I’m sure will be an extraordinary few months of the
ACPL. Thank you to IT Magia, Raanvijay
Singh and everyone involved in creating and delivering this fantastic football
property.
the stage for what I’m sure will be an extraordinary few months of the
ACPL. Thank you to IT Magia, Raanvijay
Singh and everyone involved in creating and delivering this fantastic football
property.
