Financial crunch hits SAFF U-17

The South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) shelved their men’s and women’s Under-17 tournaments this year because of financial constraints on Friday, depriving the region’s age-group teams of a key preparation platform ahead of the AFC qualifiers.

SAFF General Secretary Purushottam Cattel attributed the decision to financial difficulties and a change in the federation’s marketing partner.

“We are not able to organise this tournament this time due to financial reasons. Our marketing partner has changed. This is also an issue. This is definitely necessary for the development of football. However, work is underway to organise it again in the future,” Cattel said.

The tournament’s logo was unveiled at a ceremony after the World Cup under the name of Techno. Cattel said Bangladeshi company TSA has acquired SAFF’s rights in Bangladesh and will act as the marketing partner.

“TSA has taken the rights of SAFF in Bangladesh. They are the marketing partner of this tournament. They will look after the sponsors of the tournament and other matters, and we will get a financial figure from them,” he said.

SAFF had faced considerable difficulties in recovering money after organising the 2021 SAFF Championship in the Maldives. It remains to be seen how financially beneficial its agreement with TSA proves to be this time.

TSA previously managed the Bangladesh Women’s Football League, where branding and additional expenditure had raised questions within the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF).

The draw for the AFC U-17 Men’s Qualifying Tournament was held yesterday, with the qualifiers scheduled to be played in seven Asian countries in November.

The federation has also incurred considerable expenditure over the past year on constitutional amendments, the AGM and executive meetings.