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Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Bagan may host I-League ties!

Mohun Bagan may host some of the I-League matches this season, according to IFA secretary Utpal Ganguly. Ganguly said he was keen to create two more venues in and around Calcutta for the second edition of the I-League. “I have already spoken to the AIFF in this regard and have requested them to consider Mohun Bagan ground along with the stadium at Kalyani or Siliguri as permanent I-League venues, apart from the Salt Lake Stadium and the Barasat stadium,” he said. Regarding imposition of levy on Bengal Peerless for hosting the Bayern Munich-Mohun Bagan match, the IFA secretary said he expected the AIFF to take a softer stand. “I am quite happy with the way the AIFF has been helping us for smooth conduct of the match,” Ganguly said. “The AIFF has assured me that the executive committee may try to waive off the levy when it meets in New Delhi on Tuesday,” he said. Meanwhile, Calcutta referee Subrata Sarkar is likely to officiate the Bayern match.

Finally Barreto gets back his Passport and flies off to Brazil!

Mohun Bagan ace Jose Ramirez Barreto finally got back his passport after getting in trouble with Forex. The month long tussle between Barreto and the Forex Dept. which had detained his passport, finally came to an end two days back when the High Court order for the return of Barreto's passport and gave the green signal for leaving the country. But his passport was being withheld even after the order. Tomorrow however, Barreto filed another suit on the ground of "non-compliance of court order amounting to contempt" of court against the respective authority resulting in a hasty return of his passport today morning itself.
After getting back his passport, he had a long talk with Debashish Dutta and later flew off to Brazil to his family. Barreto has not informed when he will return and his presence in the Bagan - Bayern match is a remote possibility.
Along with Barreto, Bhaichung also will not feature in the match along with other Bagan players attending the National Camp as the Federation is against releasing players for the occasion.

Monday, April 28, 2008

Mohun Bagan Plan An U-17 International Tournament!

Mohun Bagan Academy is planning an International Football Festival for the U-17 this year and have roped in the services of Wizcraft event management for the same. Mohun Bagan being the only club to have its own residential academy in place took inspiration from the words of Indian national team coach Bob Houghton and technical director Colin Toal. The spokeswoman for Mohun Bagan Academy Ms. Sohini Chaubey said, “In a meeting held earlier this year, Bob Houghton and Colin Toal expressed their desire for the academies to have more competitive games in a year. Apart from the Nike – Manchester United Cup there isn’t really much happening. So, we decided to have a tournament of our own but it’s still in the planning stages.” The Kolkata champion club’s academy currently has approximately 45 kids of U-17 and U-19 age group. This year the Academy does plan to recruit U-15 too. “They (kids) are our future and we certainly can’t judge them by playing amongst themselves. They need exposure,” Sohini adds. The event is likely to take place in September or October in Kolkata with plans to have five Indian and foreign teams respectively. “We shall see to it that the event is attractive and a lot of exciting clubs participate. We’ve got to establish the event and then look for some good European names to join in. “We thank Mohun Bagan for realizing the potential in developing the younger lot by setting up its own academy,” said Nigel Empson from Wizcraft. Mohun Bagan are seriously looking to develop this tournament into an annual affair and thus, draw interest from some of the best clubs in the world. “We do have a plan. Probably in five years, we hope the tournament draws enough attention nationally and internationally,” signs off Sohini. Source: Goal.com

AIFF plans to impose levy on organisers for Bayern-Bagan match!

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) is planning to impose a huge levy on the organisers of the Bayern Munich versus Mohun Bagan match at the Salt Lake Stadium on May 27. According to sources, the AIFF executive committee, which will meet in the capital on Tuesday, is likely to determine the exact amount that Bengal Peerless, organisers of the high profile exhibition match, should be asked to pay. AIFF general secretary Alberto Colaco has already conveyed this decision to his IFA counterpart, Utpal Ganguly, in a meeting here on Sunday. Sources said that the IFA is quite upset with the decision and Ganguly has already asked Colaco to review the AIFF’s position regarding the Bayern Munich tie. “The IFA is disappointed with the way the AIFF has been creating hurdles for the Bayern-Mohun Bagan match,” sources said. “First, the AIFF delayed in granting permission for hosting the match. Now they are trying to extract money from the organisers,” they added. Ganguly is believed to have informed the AIFF secretary that the organisers of the match were only doing a favour to the game by hosting the tie at their own expense and it would be unfair on the federation’s part to impose levy. The federation has also informed the IFA that it would not be possible to release national team players from the camp for the Bayern Munich’s match. “The national coach (Bob Houghton) is against releasing players from the camp,” Colaco told Ganguly. A few days back, the AIFF received a request to release Bhaichung Bhutia for a charity match in Europe involving Luis Figo. The request was turned down. The AIFF has also asked the IFA to ensure that everything goes on smoothly on the day of the match. “Fifa has written to the AIFF and they are particularly keen to know about the floodlight arrangements at the Salt Lake Stadium,” sources said. Source: The Telegraph

Monday, April 21, 2008

Barreto still to get back his Passport, May skip match against Bayern Munich!

Barreto who had managed to receive an order in favour of him for the return of his passport and thus return to Brazil did not receive his passport within the allotted time. He had appealed to the High Court and after the hearing of his case was done last week, the court said that it will pass the order on Tuesday, 22nd April.
Barreto who has been withheld from joining his family in Brazil and has been detained in Kolkata has decided that in case the court orders to return his passport and he flies off to Brazil, he may not come back in time for the Mohun Bagan - Bayern Munich match on the 27th of April.

Monday, April 7, 2008

Barreto to fly off to Brazil on Wednesday!

Barreto, who had been arrested and whose passport had been detained 17 days from now for possession of foreign currency, today had a hearing in the Court for the return of his passport and much to relief of Barreto and the Bagan fans, he received the order in his favour and will be getting back his passport tomorrow and most probably fly off to Brazil on Wednesday. Barreto will receive his passport as Mohun Bagan Club Secretary Anjan Mitra signed the bond that Barreto will show up before the Court on the 25th of May.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Bhaichung leaves torch team!

Bhaichung Bhutia has got the Tibetan cause on the score-sheet, becoming the first Indian to drop out of the Olympic torch relay. The national football captain took the decision on his own, unasked by Tibetan protesters, who had requested actor Aamir Khan to withdraw from the April 17 relay in New Delhi. Aamir has not replied. “I sympathise with the Tibetans and their cause. I have sent a letter to the IOA (Indian Olympic Association) refusing to carry the torch,” Bhaichung told The Telegraph today. Association president Suresh Kalmadi had faxed a letter to the Mohun Bagan skipper about three weeks ago, inviting him to participate in the relay. Red-faced IOA officials refused comment this evening. “I have learned from someone that Bhutia has turned down our invitation,” association secretary-general Randhir Singh said. “Since we haven’t received any letter from him, I would not like to comment on it.” Bhaichung’s home state, Sikkim, has a large population of Tibetan exiles. Last week, Tibetan youths from the Northeast had marched to Rangpo on the Sikkim-Bengal border, looking to enter Tibet through Nathu-la, before being dissuaded by the Dalai Lama. Tibetan youth bodies opposing the Games, who had sent the appeal to Aamir, were surprised and overjoyed at Bhaichung’s decision. “We welcome it. It will encourage others like (veteran athlete) P.T. Usha and Aamir Khan,” Tibetan Youth Congress president Tsewang Rigzin said. “It’s a good surprise,” said Tenzin Thoedon, campaign co-ordinator, Students for a Free Tibet India. “Bhaichung is an icon for young Indians. I am proud that he declined the offer for the sake of Tibetans.” The Dalai Lama’s government-in-exile, which supports the Games being held in Beijing, reacted cautiously. “If Bhaichung Bhutia took this decision for the plight of Tibetans in China, human rights in particular, the Central Tibetan Administration welcomes it. But if the decision is (against) the Olympic Games, we have nothing to say,” said Thubten Samphel, spokesperson for the government-in-exile. The India leg of the 130-day, 31-nation relay will start from the Red Fort and end at India Gate wrapped in a blanket of security. Beijing had recently threatened to cancel the Delhi event after Tibetan protesters scaled its embassy walls, drawing Indian assurances of watertight security on April 17. Some 10,000 police are expected to line the torch route; the Chinese embassy has already been ringed with barbed wire coils. A meeting of officials from the Union home ministry, Delhi government, police, intelligence agencies and the IOA today decided to raise the security for the relay to the level of Republic Day and Independence Day, sources said. Police commissioner Y.S. Dadwal was told that he should, if necessary, hem the city’s Tibetans in north Delhi’s monastery area where most of them live. The tone of the meeting, followed by Bhaichung’s decision, sent IOA officials into their shell. Secretary-general Randhir wouldn’t even say which other sports personalities the association had invited. He passed the question to association director A.S.V. Prasad, who was even more cautious. “The invitations are being handled by different agencies. While IOA sent some invitation letters, some sports promotional bodies are also involved. A clear picture will emerge only after a few days,” he said. Sources said the invitees included Usha and Olympic medallists Leander Paes and Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore. With inputs from Jaydeep Basu and Bhavna Vij-Arora in New Delhi and Manjeet Sehgal Warrier in Shimla.

MOHUN BAGAN ATHLETIC CLUB-The National club of India

A Short History:

MOHUN BAGAN AC-The National club of India, the oldest Club in Asia,
was established on 15th August 1889 when India was up in arms against her collonial head, England.

Eversince its establishment the Club had been winning a lot of local leagues and cups but the moment of greatness that surpasses all came in the year 1911 when Mohun Bagan AC became the first Indian club/team to defeat the foreigners in their own game of football.

On 29th of July 1911 Mohun Bagan won the IFA shield beating East Yorkshire 2-1. Eversince there has been no stopping!

The club has won and keeps on winning many a laurel for the country! It has made our Nation Proud!

According to FIFA rankings, in Asia, Mohun Bagan is the 16th biggest team to have an avg. home crowd of 19,888. According to World standards, Mohun Bagan has been ranked of 127 much ahead of other big clubs like Udinese(Italy), Benfica(Portugal) and Fulham(England) to mention a few.

It is however,not an easy task to consolidate the history of a club which is more than 117 years old*...(read more...)

*For Further Info:Please visit The Offical site of MAC: History section please open in a New Window

Location: Kolkata Maidan
Colours:
Green and Maroon
Symbol: Sail Boat

Stadium: Mohun Bagan ground
Yuva Bharati Krirangan

MOHUN BAGAN AC- It's not just a club, it is an institution, a religion, a passion. LIVE IT...DIE FOR IT...

A Pictorial trip of the Mohun Bagan Ground!

Satellite Imagery of our Club Ground!*
*Open in a New Window please.
Images of Yuva Bharati Krirangan*
*Open in a New Window please.

Photos by: Soumyadeb Sinha
Photos by: Soumyadeb Sinha

Souvenirs

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