Catch 'Em Young & Go for Goal: On the sidelines of the largest Under 21 youth tournament nationwide - the  Reliance Foundation Development League, host Arijit Barman sits down with India's most famous footballer Sunil Chhetri.In a candid tell-all chat, this Khel Ratna and Arjuna Awardee reveal what it takes to start young and strike big in the fast-moving football ecosystem in India. The captain of Bangalore FC and the Indian National Team dives into creating not just players but passion...

Catch 'Em Young & Go for Goal: The largest Under 21 youth tournament nationwide - the  Reliance Foundation Development League - with teams across 9 regions in India from ISL, I-League division 1st & 2nd division and even Independent Academies nominated is striving to build a robust pipeline of the future cohort of champions who can match the best in class. Simultaneously, for the last 2 years, the Next Generation Cup has been conceived in partnership with English Premier League to...

Office teams that once produced the best playing talent and packed grounds that once saw nail-biting games lie bare and quiet. AIFF wants to start a home-and-away league for public sector enterprises. But sustaining it will be easier said than a kick-off.  Host Arijit Barman speaks to Shaji Prabhakaran, AIFF’s Secretary-General, Jitu Chetry, Manager of Oil India Ltd’s football team and a Former East Bengal Goalkeeper, Dhronacharya Award Winner and legendary Air India Coach Bimal Ghosh, Bibek...

The chief executive of Sports at Viacom 18 Media, Anil Jayaraj. fields bouncers, googlies and even an occasional doosra from host Arijit Barman as the battle for eyeballs gets played both on and off the field this season. It’s the first time the media rights are split between Viacom18 and Disney holding the digital and television rights to the Indian Premier League (IPL). Both sides are bowling beamers at each other, claiming superior viewership numbers and each asserting conflicting claims...

Rajeev Chandrasekhar a former telecom tycoon from the early 2000s turned politician who is well aware of the fractious relationship between the state and private enterprises, is now, as a minister, trying to play referee in another equally high stakes match involving a sector that is perceived to be a problem child to many and therefore has often been at logger heads with the taxman, regulators, politicians and the policymakers – online gaming. Last week he tried to bring in some semblance of...

On part 2 we explore the potential solutions to this dilemma as our panel gets creative in recommending different methods of bridging the gap between what fans want and what they are currently experiencing. We speak with a crack panel of experts - G Srinivasan, someone who has worked across all aspects of the sports universe, Sudhir Shukla, a marketing and brand management guru, Hrishikesh Shende, formerly of Adidas and Rakesh Patel, founder of the Bharat Army as we break down the different...

On part 1 of this special two part episode we introduce our guest co-host Shiv Burman from our knowledge partners Burman Sports as we speak to some of the sharpest minds of the sports industry - G Srinivasan, someone who has worked across all aspects of the sports universe, Sudhir Shukla, a marketing and brand management guru, Hrishikesh Shende, formerly of Adidas and Rakesh Patel, founder of Bharat Army as we break down the different types of Indian fans and ask the question - why are...

India hosts its first ever first-ever Formula E-Prix, the electric equivalent of a Formula 1 race kicked off in Hyderabad on Feb 11th before it tours off to Cape Town and Brazil. In this episode host, Arijit Barman travels to Hyderabad, the 30th pitstop for Formula E as he goes BTS on how motor racing is putting sustainability on the fast track. Featuring single-seater, electrically powered Formula E cars with batteries charged by solar farms in the state of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh and...

Fifteen years ago, at the inaugural season of IPL, eight franchises were bought for around $724 million. In 2023, five teams for season 1 of Women's Premier League ( WPL) were bought for a cumulative $572 million. It took 26 years for the US women's basketball team to fetch a $1 billion valuation. So if you thought cricket was a gentleman's game you must have been living under a rock. Top corporates Reliance, Adani, JSW, Diageo or brands like Puma and Mastercard have sensed an untapped...

On this episode Karan Ravishankar travels to Odisha as he gets all the scoop from the stadiums as we break down everything it takes to host a World Cup. He speaks to supporters, players, organizers and sponsors including  Thierry Weil, CEO of the FIH, Mr. R Vineel Krishna, Commissioner cum Secretary, Sports & Youth Services Department, Government of Odisha and Chanakya Chaudhary, VP of Corporate Services for Tata Steel to highlight where we are as a nation when it comes to the state of...

On this episode we speak to Abhinav Bindra, India’s first ever individual Olympic gold medallist as he breaks down the impact of Sport in our society with hosts Karan Ravishankar and Uday Jhala. Are we too obsessed with chasing medals or should we be looking at the larger impact sport can have on shaping our lives? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Asia's biggest marathon, the Tata Mumbai Marathon with 55,000 runners, 7 different categories captured the spirit of Mumbai. The running revolution comes with a price tag. In this episode ET's Arijit Barman talks to Vivek Singh, Joint Managing Director of Procam International, the man who has been jointly running the show with his brother Anil since the inception of the race in 2003-04. Today Procam is behind all the major marathons in India -- including New Delhi, Bangalore & Kolkata....

The rush to run, from weightless to destressing to charity; everyone has their rationale to go the extra mile. Here are a few select voices amid a rising running revolution. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The biggest sporting stories of the year gone by and the stage for 2023, it’s game on in the new year. In this episode Explosion of e-sports in India, from competitive gaming to e-sports there is a new league of players and fans in town. Qatar Football World Cup deep dive – the tech take the game to new highs  Golf Wars: PGA vs LIV Golf drama continues, what does the drama between  American-based tour and Saudi Arabia backed LIV puts question marks on the future of golf.  Women sports take...

On this episode, we speak with Justin Geale, Tournament Director of Major League Cricket and the former Director of Operations for the IPL and Jeet Banerjee, MD at Gameplan Sports as well as the man who controlled the IPL auction paddle for a number of years for KKR. Our hosts Karan Ravishankar and Uday Jhala are invited in for a unique masterclass as we receive an education in what goes on behind the scenes at an IPL auction - how it works, what the strategies are, the mind games employed...

On this episode we speak to Tom Byer, former AFC Technical Advisor and credited with transforming Japan’s football development structure and Akshay Tandon, President of FC Goa and one of the youngest administrators in world sport. Our host Arijit Barman hosts a lively debate on the globalisation of the beautiful game as our panel dissects the flashpoints and storylines from the World Cup so far. Credits: FIFA, Viacom18 Sports & Jio Cinema See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It is game on for Pro Kabbadi League 2022. This week's episode guest is Anupam Goswami - League Commissioner, Vivo Pro Kabaddi League discusses the gameplan of success that has made PKL wildly popular. From the brainchild of Charu Sharma to the broadcast brilliance of Star is PKL ready for a global explosion? aHost Karan Ravishankar in a candid chat with Anupam Goswami on what it to grow a fanbase for a new homegrown Indian sport.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, we speak with Nikhil Bardia, head of Sponsorship Sales and Talent at RISE Worldwide. Our host Karan Ravishankar has a frank conversation about the changing commercial face of the sports industry, how brands interact with franchises and how these deals are cracked, with a view from the inside. We further go into Nikhil’s experience building the talent management vertical at RISE Worldwide. The roster includes power hitters Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah amongst other...

As FIFA kicks off the World Cup in Qatar, host Uday Jhala talks to Neel Shah, former director of fan development for the MLS and author of the book Awakening the Blue Tigers: India’s Quest for Football’s Holy Grail. We tackle the perennial question of when Team India will be able to qualify for the Football World Cup. He breaks down the step by step process required to overhaul a system in order for us to achieve our goals. Do we have what it takes? Credit: FIFA See omnystudio.com/listener...

In this week’s episode, Our host Uday Jhala and Karan Ravishankar speak to Nikita Luther and Dhaval Mudgal, superstars of the Indian poker scene as they give us a masterclass into what it takes to becoming a successful professional poker player. They continue to drop aces on how to navigate the murky and often controversial world of the poker business in India. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's episode, we speak to Mustafa Ghouse CEO of JSW Sports , the organisation that is driving India's push to Olympic glory. Whether it is Neeraj Chopra, Sakshi Malik or Avinash Sable, what they all share in common is that they were scouted and trained at JSW Sport’s world class athletic facility - The Inspire Institute of Sport. We dig deep into what it takes to be a force on the Olympic stage as an athlete and the work that takes behind the scenes as a company nurturing these...

As we enter an era of the multi-franchise ownership model, the landscape of ownership in the sports sector is changing fast. The injection of vast amounts of capital that is being infused into sports has led to the birth of ownership groups that own multiple clubs and franchises across multiple geographies. These goliath organisations are able to cover the entire life-cycle of sportsperson from their playing career to creating pathways for life after retiring as an active player. In today's...

This week, host Karan Ravishankar deep dives into monetising the fandom of sports. Karan is joined by the Co-founder of Fancode, Yannick Colaco, a sports media stalwart with over 20 years of experience in the industry, having led brands like Nimbus Sport, NBA India and now Fancode. The Dream Sports backed OTT platform was founded in 2019 and has seen a meteoric rise in its adoption by sports fans in India since. We dig deep to understand changing trends in the world of sports media and...

On the first episode of The Business of Sports, we discuss all things cricket with the legendary South African former player and coach Gary Kirsten. A household name in India, Gary Kirsten delivered the Indian Cricket Team to the promised land in 2011, winning the ODI World Cup after 28 years under his stewardship. Our host Uday Jhala goes in depth with Gary Kirsten about the evolution and future of cricket since the introduction of the T20 format, the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2022 being...