Aditya Thackeray wants football to take cue from cricket

Football enthusiast and chairman of the local football body MDFA, Aditya Thackeray, wants football in the city to take a cue from cricket and encourage children to play "gully football", like they do with the willow game.
"We are trying to establish new football grounds. Mumbai has the concept of gully cricket. I am trying to popularise gully football which needs just a ball to kick around," said Thackeray at a media conference of the Mumbai FC I-League team here today.
Mumbai FC also announced the launch of the Mumbai Football Academy, in a joint effort with the Brihanmumbai Kreeda ani Lalitkala Pratishtan (BKLP).

The academy, to be run by Mumbai FC, will be open for boys and girls between the ages of 4 and 16. It would commence in the third week of January at the Mumbai Football Arena in Andheri.