Indian Super League club Delhi Dynamos FC was officially renamed as Odisha FC, in the presence of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in Bhubaneswar. A formal agreement was signed by the sports and youth services department of the Odisha government and Delhi Soccer Private Limited—the owner of the club—on Saturday.
The agreement was signed at the Lok Seva Bhavan in Bhubaneswar. State Sports Minister Tusharkanti Behera was also present.
According to an official release, as part of the club’s operations in Odisha, the club’s first team, youth teams, youth football development programme and grassroots football development programme will be based in Odisha.
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The state government will provide the club world-class infrastructure, including the Kalinga Stadium, for the home matches in the ISL and practice facilities. The stadium has hosted a home game of Jamshedpur FC, home games of the Indian Arrows in the I-league, two editions of the Super Cup and India’s first 4-nations international senior tournament—the Hero Gold Cup.
The state government has also got provisional clearance for 2020 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup at Kalinga Stadium.
The Delhi-based club shift its base to Bhubaneswar to cope with the rising cost of operation in the capital.
Sources also say that the high levels of air pollution in Delhi also played a part in the move. For the past two years, players, especially the foreigners, have been practising with protective masks. Last year, Delhi Dynamos coach Josep Gombau had lamented that it is not easy for overseas players to adjust their body to the atmosphere. Air pollution had also affected the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2017.
With Delhi Dynamos shifting to the Odisha capital, there won't be any team from north India in this season of the ISL.