Ao-Sangma football tourney among HB offseason activities

KOHIMA — The Highlander Brigade (HB), the supporters’ club of the Indian Super League club Northeast United FC (NEUFC), is preparing for its offseason activities, which include the second edition of the Ao-Sangma Shield Football Tournament.

President of the club Abhishek Lahkar, providing updates on its offseason activities, said that as part of its activities, they are planning to organise the second edition of the Ao Sangma Shield Football Tournament and the All Assam Amateur Community Futsal Tournament, a 16-team 5-a-side knockout tournament, in collaboration with the Assam Football Association on May 2.

Also, they will host the fifth edition of the HB E-football tournament from May 5 to the 7th.

In May 2023, the Highlander Brigade hosted the inaugural edition of the Ao-Sangma Shield Football Tournament, named after two stalwarts of Indian and Assam football, Dr. Talimeren Ao and Gilbertson Sangma.

“We feel proud that the family of Dr. Talimeren Ao also supported us and financially helped us organise this tournament last year,” he said.

He added that last year’s edition was a great success, and they plan to host the second edition of the tournament in Guwahati towards the end of June. While it began as a 5-a-side tournament, they have aspirations to expand it into a full-fledged 11-a-side tournament in the future.

Providing further updates on the tournament, he mentioned their intentions to make it even grander than last year, with increased prize money and greater participation from football enthusiasts. He expressed hopes of making a positive impact on the football scene not only in Assam but also across the entire north-east region.

“The main purpose is to give the footballers of the region a platform to showcase their talent, hone their skills, and most importantly, have a good playing time. As in Assam, we have very little exposure for a footballer. We just want to fill that void to some extent through this tournament,” Lakhar said.

Vikas Baruah, a founding member and current advisory committee member of HB, informed that the club operates as an independent and non-profit supporters’ club dedicated to supporting NEUFC. Funding is sourced from various channels.

They collect a mandatory registration fee of INR 100 from individuals interested in joining the club. Furthermore, they encourage monthly contributions from members, with a minimum of INR 70 for students and INR 150 for working individuals.

“Profits generated from these events are reinvested into supporters’ club activities such as creating large tifos, banners, graffiti art, buying drums, etc., all aimed at promoting football and fan culture in the northeast region,” he said.