Atletico Madrid re-enter Indian football, partner with RDB Group to form Inter Kashi

The club is targeting a direct I-League entry, and have roped in Carlos Santamarina as head coach.

 Kolkata-based Conglomerate RDB have launched the first-ever professional club from Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, and have christened it as 'Inter Kashi.'

The club has partnered with Spanish Giants Atletico De Madrid, former Andorran league champions Inter Escalades, and FC Andorra, a club which is co-owned by FC Barcelona great Gerard Pique which competes in the Segunda Division (second division) of the Spanish League.

Statement from Atletico Madrid

Atletico De Madrid in its statement said, “Club Atlético de Madrid is thrilled to announce its return to Indian Football through a partnership with the RDB Group of Companies, through the collaboration in its exclusive Project to create the first-ever National-Level Club in the State of Uttar Pradesh.

While creating a Club from scratch is always a challenge, Club Atlético de Madrid will help and look to draw upon its 120 year history and experience, coupled with the on-ground execution support of the RDB Group.

Atlético's Chief Executive Officer, Miguel Ángel Gil Marin is excited at the opportunity to cooperate in this Project with Vinod Dugar, the Co-Promoter of RDB Group, and is ready for the challenge to make Uttar Pradesh the cradle of football in India.”

 “While the starting of the first-ever National-Level Club from Uttar Pradesh remains the primary target of this collaboration, in which Atlético will provide full support for the footballing and technical side of the Club, an equally important part of the vision of both Companies is the creation of Youth Academies and development of football at the grassroots level.

In order to achieve the objective of making a lasting, impactful, and holistic change in Indian Football, the Club is looking to start "Atlético de Bharat" - it’s first Academy in India in the very near future, with a vision to have home grown talents represent the National Team on a regular basis,” the statement read.

Carlos Santamarina to helm Inter Kashi

The RDB group had applied to compete in the upcoming season of the I-League via direct corporate entry and have named Spanish tactician and former Jamshedpur FC boss Carlos Santamarina at the helm of the club. Earlier this year, the All India Football Federation had made an announcement regarding corporate entry and 5 entities expressed their interest for the spot in India’s second division league.

Details on I-League bidders

The AIFF earlier this year put out a statement which read, “The AIFF has received 5 bids for the sole corporate entry team spot in I-League 2023-24. The league already has 11 clubs listed to participate, and a Federation decided to include a 12th team via the bidding route.”

The crest which was launched today is Shivaling theme with a tripund striked on it  and it also reflects the buildings of the Kashi Ghats near the bank of the river Ganga. The league system in India has now opened up with clubs in I-League and second Division can climb up the ladder and can compete in the top division league of India, and Inter Kashi will also be looking to replicate the same.