16 Sesa FA graduates ready for professional career moves

Panaji: Sixteen players have graduated from the Sesa Football Academy after a four-year residential training stint and will look to follow in the footsteps of famous trainees who went on to represent the country.

Sesa have groomed 183 footballers since it disbanded its senior football team (Sesa Goa) and started the academy in 1999. Many of the academy graduates have represented Indian Super League (ISL) and I-League clubs, while nine have earned a national team cap.

“All these 16 students completed residential training programme at SFA and are set to begin their professional careers in football,” the academy said in a statement on Tuesday.

SFA said it aims to develop quality footballers from Goa and across the country by creating an environment for discovering, nurturing, and building talent.

“The academy identifies and trains talented youngsters by inducting them into its residential programme and over a period of four years, nurtures and develops them into professional footballers,” said SFA.

Sports minister Govind Gaude who was present for the send off ceremony at the academy campus in Sirsaim appreciated the contribution of Sesa in the field of grassroots development.

“Goa has massive potential to excel in sports and our constant endeavour will be to identify and nurture these sports talents through robust trainings and right platform,” said Gaude.

Navin Jaju, CEO, Sesa Goa, Vedanta Limited said the company remains committed to nurturing football talent.

“I am happy to see that our commitment, training and guidance has been instrumental in propelling the aspirations of these young and talented youth as they embark on their journey towards professional football career and take the SFA legacy forward,” said the CEO.

“As a strong advocate for youth empowerment through sports development, I firmly believe in the transformative power of sports in shaping lives and fostering holistic growth,” said Annanya Agarwal, president, Vedanta Sports. “We will continue to support and encourage the dreams and aspirations of young athletes, as they truly represent the future of sports in India.”

PK Mukherjee, non-executive independent director, SCDF, Saptesh Sardesai, CEO- VAB, Vedanta Limited and Padma Shri Brahmanand Shankhwalkar were also present for the event.