All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Praful Patel on Monday said hosting the U-17 Women's World Cup will "provide global recognition" to Indian football.
Patel chaired the federation's Annual General Meeting which was attended by general secretary Kushal Das, senior vice-president Subrata Dutta, KMI Mather, Manvendra Singh and all executive committee members among others
"New academies, facilities in schools, basic grooming and conditioning are some aspects which we're working on relentlessly. It's not an overnight process."
"We have encountered many challenges and have come a long way. But we have to do much better. We need active support, cooperation from each State Association, the associate members as well as the support of parent body FIFA and AFC to scale to newer heights."
"While 11 states took part last year, it has increased to 21 this year. The number of League operators have increased from 83 to 120 while the number of registered kids have surpassed 30000 this year. 21,471 kids participated in the League last year."