ISL side Delhi Dynamos tie-up with Feyenoord Rotterdam

Amidst much fan fare, Delhi Dyanamos, the Delhi franchise of the Indian Super League (ISL), was unveiled here Thursday. The football club will have a strategic tie-up with leading Dutch side Feyenoord Rotterdam.

Rotterdam, the first Dutch team to win the European Cup (now known as the Champions League) in 1970, will assist Dynamos in building up the team, provide coach, physios, trainers and grass roots programme. A young player from Rotterdam will also be seen in action for Dynamos, which was bought by cable network group DEN Network for a whopping Rs.18 crore.

Sameer Manchanda, chairman and managing director of DEN Networks, said that Delhi Dynamos is a serious business proposition for them.

"Wherever you put money, it becomes business. It is a serious business proposition for us and we hope to generate profits in the next two to three years," said Manchanda during the unveiling of the team at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, which will be the home of Delhi Dynamos.

Asked how realistic were his predictions of profits when some Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises are still struggling to break even, Manchanda said: "There are ways of making profits cost-wise. Costs are lower in football when compared to cricket. When costs are lower, your revenues are also lower. Revenues will surprise all of us in the second or the third year."

Manchanda hoped that Feyenoord Rotterdam would help Delhi Dynamos to build a strong competitive team. The 2014 World Cup saw twelve Feyenoord Rotterdam-trained players, including Robin Van Persie and Bruno Martins Indi.

"With Feyenoord Rotterdam, we look forward to building a team of world-class players who can inspire with their skills and represent our city's hopes and aspirations. Our dream is to take India to the global football stage and ultimately to the FIFA World Cup. They will assist us in overall development of the club and its initiatives," said Manchanda, adding that Delhi Dynamos would announce its marquee player latest by Aug 15.

Gido Vader, head of international relations of Feyenoord, said that they have finalised on an European coach but declined to reveal the name. Vader also declined to comment whether two former Denmark players - Mads Junker and Morten Skoubo - are on the Dynamos radar.

"The task at hand now is to build a team, how do we progress Indian football, get the coaching level up, provides the right platform to the talents... It takes time to build talent and we have a strategy in place," he said.

Feyenoord Rotterdam is one of the two biggest football clubs in the Netherlands. It was founded in 1908 by a band of brothers, who transformed te club into a powerhouse in the last 100 year.

In 1970 Feyenoord became the first Dutch to lift a major European trophy, when it conquered the European Cup (which is known as the Champions League nowadays). Feyenoord was also the first Dutch club to win the Intercontinental Cup (1970) as well as the UEFA Cup (1974, nowadays known as the Europa League).

In the Netherlands, Feyenoord was the first club to win a double. In 1965 the Rotterdam outfit conquered both the league and the Dutch FA Cup. In 2002 Feyenoord was the last Dutch club to win a European trophy, when it bagged its second UEFA Cup.