SL football to implement FIFA Connect

Sri Lanka’s football chief Jaswar Umar has said the federation will now implement FIFA Connect to help monitor football’s uptake countrywide.

The Programme helps member associations register all their stakeholders in a systematic way and keep track of players.

Umar’s announcement came at a meeting the visiting FIFA president Gianni Infantino had with the local football community.

The FFSL president explained, "When you look at Sri Lanka, at the territories, towns, villages, schools, you (see) how much our children, our youth and our women are playing football in all parts of the country.”

"Now we are engaging on a special registration mission with FIFA's support to register and to include our football family, our kids, our youth, our children, to register into our fold, so we know exactly where we stand, how many people are playing football, and how many are playing in different areas, so we know exactly how and where to plan our future development," he said.

FIFA President Infantino said his meetings with the political leadership during his two-day stay addressed grassroots football, club football, and infrastructure in Sri Lanka.

“We are looking at a proper, real football stadium for Sri Lanka, because a stadium today is not just a place where you play football,” the FIFA President said.

“A stadium is an icon for a country. Today, if matches are played at national level, the eyes of the world are watching. And when they see a nice, modern football stadium, the impression of people who are watching is that the whole country is modern and professional.”

“We have the commitment of the government to help us finding the right place for the stadium to be either refurbished or built from scratch, and we are here to help and invest,” Infantino added.