India's first ever tech-driven girls football academy launched in collaboration with AIFF

Hindustan Zinc Ltd, in partnership with the All India Football Federation (AIFF), on Thursday (July 31) launched the Zinc Football Girls Academy in Zawar, near Udaipur, Rajasthan — a first-of-its-kind, tech-enabled grassroots football initiative for girls. The AIFF will act as the academy’s strategic and technical partner, providing operational guidelines, technical expertise, best practices, and training support for coaches and scouts.

At the heart of the academy is F-Cube Training and Assessment Technology, a unique player development system that uses continuous data tracking, analysis, and monitoring to optimise performance. The fully residential academy boasts world-class facilities and has inducted its first batch of 20 talented girls under the age of 15 from Rajasthan, Gujarat, West Bengal, Haryana, and Jharkhand. Plans are in place to expand to 60 players within 12–18 months. In addition to football training, the programme ensures access to formal education, mentorship, and holistic development.

Speaking on the occasion, Kalyan Chaubey, president of AIFF, said, “This partnership will boost girls’ football in Rajasthan and across India. The timing is crucial — AIFF has recorded a 232% rise in women player registrations and the Senior Women’s National Team has qualified for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 in Australia. We are proud to extend our technical support to this academy.”

Meanwhile, WION's sport correspondent Nikhil Mathur spoke to some of the girls on the sidelines. Alia Khan, who plays as a defender was all praise for the facilities. She said, “The facilities here are top class. The coaches here support us a lot.” Another girl, Pratigya Mehra, who is a goalkeeper echoed same sentiments. She said, “We always wanted to go to an academy and practice there. Now that we have been selected, we will give our 100%. We will work hard day and night and our dream is to don the national jersey and make our parents proud.”

Meanwhile, India women's football captain Sweety who was also present at the event said, “I am very lucky I got the opportunity to captain the Indian women's football team. I will continue to do well for India and work towards our ultimate aim, which is to qualify for the FIFA World Cup.”