Bhubaneswar, September 10: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday launched the official Host City Logo for Odisha for the upcoming FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2022™, amidst much fanfare at Kalinga Stadium here. Odisha is one of the three hosts.
The FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2022™, scheduled to be held between 11th October and 30th October across Odisha, Goa and Maharashtra, will be the first FIFA women’s competition to be held in India and the first FIFA competition to be hosted by the state of Odisha.
“The official Host City Logo launch of Odisha is an important milestone which also signifies the progress of women’s football. We are excited to host the best young female footballers from across the world and especially, the Indian team who will be playing all their group stage games at the Kalinga Stadium,” said Patnaik.
“As the Indian team makes their first appearance in a FIFA women’s competition, I encourage the people of Odisha to show their support in strong numbers at the stadium,” said Patnaik.
The official Host City Logo of Odisha is a composite that presents the official emblem of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup India 2022™️ beside a specially designed artwork that showcases the rich cultural heritage, vibrant sporting ecosystem and overall splendour of the state.
Project Directors of the Local Organising Committee (LOC) for the tournament, Ankush Arora and Nandini Arora, also conveyed their sentiments of gratitude, while encouraging the people to visit the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar.
LOC Project Directors – Nandini Arora and Ankush Arora – in a joint statement also thanked CM Naveen Patnaik for the support.
The event also inaugurated a special initiative for school children called the Kick Off The Dream™ Football carnival. This carnival, aimed at introducing football to children and leveraging its power to normalize gender-inclusive participation, features fun football-themed games and activities as well as one five-a-side football pitch and two three-a-side football pitches. The Kick Off the Dream™️ Football Carnival will engage nearly 60,000 school children over 35 days and conclude on 17th October 2022.
Sports Minister Tusharkanti Behera, Odisha Hockey Promotion Council Chairman Dilip Tirkey among others were present.
Hosts India – drawn alongside USA, Morocco and Brazil – will be playing all of their group stage games at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar, and the tickets for the games can be purchased from fifa.com/tickets.