Since its inception, Guwahati City FC (GCFC) has been nurturing and developing football talent, especially at the grassroots level.

In addition to giving young players a platform to showcase their football talents, the club has launched several initiatives that are ushering in a new era of football in the northeast.

From Greater Guwahati Baby League to reaching out to young footballers in need or starting flood-relief campaigns, Guwahati City FC has also been engaged with a lot of other things.

During a brief chit-chat, Kaustab Chakraborty, one of the club’s co-founders, offers detailed insight into the club and the work they have been doing.

There is a story behind everything. What’s yours?

We, as individuals who passionately love the game, always wanted the best for Assam football. We have been following local football for a long time and have seen the potential. But while the neighbouring states of Meghalaya, Mizoram, and Manipur have been producing countless amazing talents and a good number of clubs/academies to represent the state at the national stage, Assam has been lagging.

In comparison to the rich football heritage, the present and future of Assam football indicated nothing positive at all. We were unable to relate to NorthEast United FC.

In addition to the Indian Super League (ISL), NEUFC has no presence in the state. So we decided to do something in the real sense instead of cursing our fate. That is how Guwahati City FC (GCFC) was born.

What is the hardest part, the start or the journey after that

Managing and maintaining finances after starting the journey, as with any start-up, is tough. But what we had was a long-term vision, along with patience and some innovative minds to turn our weaknesses into our strengths.

We received heartwarming support from Shillong Lajong FC and its owner, Larsing Ming Sawyan. They came on board to help us start our first-ever project- the Residential Summer Soccer Camp in 2017. And that is how it started rolling.

The mission at the outset

We started with a long-term vision: invest in the grassroots and youth, and from the beginning till now, we have prioritised these two areas.

We have ambitions, but we’re proceeding cautiously given the current uncertainty at the senior level of the Indian football league structure.

The story behind the name

We have always wanted to carry the name of our home city with our club, just like any city-based club worldwide. We added ‘City’ to the name due to technical issues.

How did the team come together?

We- Siddhartha Sankar Deka, senior journalist; Darick Ranjan Deka, Marketing Expert and Kaustab Chakraborty, Digital media expert- never knew each other personally before Guwahati City FC was born.

We met through mutual friends who were also the club’s co-founders and realised that we share the same vision of going long-term in football.

So, we decided to start the club.

Meanwhile, the other four co-founders decided to part ways for personal reasons. But GCFC will always remain the symbol of unknown people becoming family for football.

The work you do

We manage and run the club keeping in view our strengths and weaknesses. On the field, we do everything like any other staff member, regardless of the type of work.

About Greater Guwahati Baby League

Greater Guwahati Baby League (GGBL) is the first-ever AIFF-approved Golden Baby League of Assam.

The idea was to bring kids as young as 4, along with their parents and the community as a whole, to the field to build a grassroots football ecosystem.

In the last two seasons, GGBL brought together more than 2,000 kids (both boys and girls) to play football and provided them with an average of 20-22 matches over 4-6 months.

GGBL was amongst the top 10 golden baby leagues recognised by AIFF last year.

How would you rate the overall football scenario in the state?

It is still lagging behind our neighbours, such as Mizoram, in terms of structure. We need a state league, a women’s state league, state youth leagues, a state futsal league, and baby leagues across the state.

Execution of many projects is stalled due to the ongoing COVID situation. We expect to see a wave of change by the end of 2021.

Support of your families

We all come from middle-class families, and they are still curious about the prospect of a career in football or sports management. But they believe in us, that is the most important thing. Their trust drives us to prove ourselves.

Your inspirations

Of course, some people did not believe in us or in our success. And the clubs which proved their mettle and climbed to the top of football on merit, not on financial muscle.

We have ambitions to rub shoulders with Bengaluru FC, but we want to follow Aizawl FC’s footsteps. We adore Liverpool or Barcelona, but want to be like Leeds United.

Has there ever been any conflict of ideas amongst you

Yes, and this actually helps us achieve tougher goals.

How do you handle adversity and doubt?

Through debate and thorough discussion.

Any message for the prospective sports entrepreneurs from the region

Sports, especially football, have immense entrepreneurial potential in the northeast. What one needs is planning and patience.

It may be mentioned here that Guwahati City FC won the U8 and U10 Leagues in both the GGBL and APRO Baby Leagues in the 2019-20 Season.

The club also won U14 and U17 Winter Championship 2021 in Azara,

Eleven U21 players of the club represented Kamrup (M) at the Senior Inter-District level.

One player from the club represented Assam at the U17 national tournament.

One player has also represented the state at the U17 Khelo India 2020.

Two U10 players from the club have also received 10-year contracts from Minerva Academy, Punjab.

Guwahati City FC has also generated flood relief to the tune of Rs 90,000.