I am glad that I didn’t only get to see India’s rich history, but also honour it- Puyol

The former Barcelona international was speaking in the captital at an event to promote the U-17 FIFA World Cup...

Former Barcelona star Carles Puyol this evening inaugurated the ticket sales of the upcoming U-17 FIFA World Cup to be hefd in India later this year. The defender was at an event at the capital's Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

At the event he presented the first ticket to Gouri Bhaduri, the grand daughter in-law of the late Shibdas Bhaduri who was the captain of the Mohin Bagan team that won the IFA Sheild in 1911. The ceremonial ticket would allow her family to attend any of the matches that take place across the six host cities.

The first set of tickets for the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 will go live on May 16th at exactly 19:11 hours paying tribute to the year in which Indian football made history. It was the first time that an Indian team won the IFA Shield by defeating an English team, East Yorkshire Regiment.

Speaking at the event Puyol said, “I was very excited and curious to discover the country and its people and I am glad that I didn’t only get to see India’s rich history, but also honour it. Indians will get the chance of seeing World Cup matches live and that experience is completely different from watching it on television. You can feel the energy in the stands. At a FIFA U-17 World Cup, you can see the stars of the future. Indians should make the most of this opportunity and come in numbers to watch international teams play at their home”.

Elaborating the ticketing programme, Vijay Goel added, “We have made sure the tickets are priced very nominally, you can buy a World Cup ticket for less than fifty rupees, so there is no reason not to come and support this tournament in large numbers”.

The start of the ticket sales will be an opportunity for football fans to enjoy heavy discounts on the purchase of tickets on a first come, first serve basis, and will be exclusively available on FIFA.com. The price cut allows a football lover buying the Kolkata Venue Package to watch a FIFA World Cup final for less than one hundred rupees.

[KH_RELATED_NEWS title="Related News"][/KH_RELATED_NEWS]

The legendary Spain defender engaged in a friendly match along with Hon’ble Minister of State (I/C) for Youth Affairs and Sports, Shri Vijay Goel, and children of the Mission XI Million programme.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2008 and 2012 European Championship winner will grace multiple events between 15 and 17 May to promote the Tournament both in New Delhi and Mumbai.