Top clubs sign deal for professional development

KARACHI: In order to strengthen football at the club level Strawberry Sports Management has struck a deal with the country’s top 20 clubs, a senior official of the company told ‘The News’.

“We have struck a deal with Pakistan’s top 20 clubs in a bid to enable them to start working in a much better and professional way,” the official said.

He said that the clubs were spread across the country. “There are three top clubs of Balochistan. Then there are clubs from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Gilgit-Baltistan. Lyallpur and some from Karachi,” the official said.

A meeting has already been held with the clubs from the northern areas. “We held a meeting with the clubs from the northern areas last week in Islamabad and very soon we are also holding a meeting with the clubs from Karachi and Balochistan,” the official said.

Besides helping them to transform themselves, the company is considering holding a club league.“In April we want the clubs to play against each other. After the ICC World Cup we will try to hold a league,” the official said.

With Pakistan’s football future yet not clear, the country’s only sports management company’s decision to strengthen the clubs through different strategies is expected to play a big role.

In Pakistan departments have a major role in football’s growth but the Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) Club Licensing regulations’ implementation would enable clubs to emerge as the main source of football development.