Wolves have teamed up with Boss Indian Entertainment to launch a first of its kind corporate football tournament in India, with a money-can’t-buy prize awaiting the winners.
The Legends Community Cup kicked off this October across three Indian cities – Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore, before the final takes place in Mumbai in November.
The winner of this tournament will get the chance to fly out to Wolverhampton in January for a once in a lifetime experience, which includes watching Wolves face Manchester United at Molineux.
During the last few years, Wolves – in conjunction with Boss India Entertainment – have been taking steps towards developing a strong marketing presence in the Indian subcontinent, with the country being a hotspot of developing the sport in south Asia.
Last season, the Premier League was broadcast to more than 60 million households in India, with the country currently sat as the sixth largest market for English top-flight football where all 380 matches throughout the campaign are available to watch live on Star Sports.
That figure is almost three times the amount of UK households which watched Premier League football during last season, while Asia – as a whole – accounts for around 60 per cent of the league’s global reach.
Since 2020, Wolves have taken part in a series of events to increase the exposure of both the Premier League and the Molineux-based football club in India, as well as trying to make a difference to the lives of supporters there.
Earlier this year coaches from the clubs Academy travelled to Delhi to work with our partner club, Young Star Academy, and the Wolves Digital Academy has trained more than 50 coaches across India.
Wolves also delivers an annual international project with Podar World College, a collaborative partner of the University of Wolverhampton and part of the Podar International School Network, boasting over 95 years of experience within the educational space.
The Podar group is now a network of 139 Podar international schools and have more than 200,000 students and 7,800 dedicated support staff and they deliver the University’s BA (Hons) business management course and the international masters in business administration course, which are accredited by the CMI.
Wolves’ academy players also experienced the taste India has for Premier League football during the summer, as they competed on the country’s soil for the first time in the club’s history before going on to lift the Next Generation Cup.
The 10-day tournament in Mumbai saw Wolves face fellow Premier League academy sides as well as teams from across the globe, before getting the better of South Africa outfit Stellenbosch in the final during a thrilling penalty shootout.
Now, the club has launched the first edition of the Legends Community Cup, a five-a-side competition which features around 72 teams, which became the fastest ever fully sold out corporate football tournament in the country.
Tapping into India’s top cities, the Legends Community Cup has attracted global corporates, including Morgan Stanley, British Airways, Maersk and HDFC Bank, as well as many more.
Russell Jones, Wolves’ general manager for marketing and commercial growth, said: “From the time I spent in India last year, I discovered so many opportunities in a country which loves Premier League football, so we are pleased to have launched our latest venture with the Legends Community Cup.
“We have already seen from the early matches of the competition how the sport is continuing to develop as well as bring people together from all backgrounds.
“We will be following the final stages of the Legends Community Cup with great interest and look forward to inviting the winners to Wolverhampton in January, where – in spite of the wintery weather – they will receive a very warm welcome.”
