The newly elected and the 24th President of the Football Federation of Sri Lanka, Mr. Ranjith Rodrigo presented his vision for the FFSL at a media conference held yesterday at the Football House.
Mr. Rodrigo takes over the office of Presidency at a time where football has set a new standard for futility in the country, and in his speech he addressed these short comings and emphasized the need to act together towards a common goal – betterment of Football in Sri Lanka. He said that it is not only the duty of the Executive Committee but also the duty of the clubs, the leagues, the players and also the media to make a conscious effort to make the correct decision and act on it.
His immediate goal is to win the SAFF tournament, scheduled to be held in the month of September 2013 in Kathmandu. In order to achieve the goal the FFSL has obtained the services of a Brazilian coach, Claudio Roberto Silveira and his assistant, Guilherme De Abreu Rangel Jr. Furthermore Anura Silva was appointed as the National team manager. He mentioned that the Sports Ministry has agreed to assist the FFSL financially.
The Federation has named the year 2013 as the “Grass Root Year” highlighting FFSL’s initiative for a stronger, more structured football future from school level and the President also invited the Sri Lanka School Football Association to join them in this worthy cause and work hand in hand for the betterment of football in Sri Lanka.
In their aim of improving Football throughout the country, the FFSL has divided the country into 5 zones, which will be headed by the 5 Vice Presidents who will be responsible for planning, organizing, executing, leagues, clubs and continuous monitoring of all the activities of the zones.
•Zone 1 – Consists of 11 leagues from Colombo to Mannar including Sri Lanka Air Force headed by Mr. R. Puvanandiran.
•Zone 2–Consists of 10 leagues from Ampara to PointPedro including Sri Lanka Navy and Civil Security Services. Rea Admiral Ananda Peiris will be in charge.
•Zone 3 – Consists of 10 leagues from Colombo to Hambantota including Sri Lanka Police and Sri Lanka School Football Association which will be headed by Dr. Manil Fernando.
•Zone 4 – Consists of 9 leagues from Gampaha to Nawalapitiya which includes the Sri Lanka Referees Association headed by Mr. Sunil Senaweera.
•Zone 5 – Consists of 9 leagues from Colombo to Nuwaraeliya via Badulla including Sri Lanka Army headed by Mr. L. Nehrugee.
In doing so Mr. Rodrigo believes each zone will individually prosper and in turn improve the quality of football in the country. The FFSL will be starting the FA Cup & Premier League tournament which wasn’t held last year in the coming months which will include 20 teams. 12 teams from last year’s Premier League, 2 from the Division 1 and another 6 from the provinces and to convert theses tournaments to primary revenue sources. Improving the facilities and the safety of both the players and referees was talked upon and welcomed the criticism from the media as Mr. Rodrigo believes, is a vital element of any sport going forward.
