Elite Football League of India (EFLI) and its university tie-ups

For a game to truly develop and promulgate amongst the masses it is essential that it reach the roots. And one of the best ways to do this is to reach out to the youth in schools and colleges. Sport when picked up at a young level always tends to create a more lasting impact and is likely to create connections of a more permanent nature than temporary ones.

The Elite Football League of India (EFLI) has undertaken exactly such a step by roping in close to 30-40 universities from across the country as part of this project. Out of these, 10 universities will feature in the initial phase first up. Each of these universities will field an American football team which will compete for the university championship. This is likely to be called the EFLI University League.

President of Operations for EFLI, Dr. Venkatesh Movva, had said at the time of the launch – “We are providing infrastructure and coaching facilities to the universities. We are also planning to promote the game by introducing it in high schools and colleges so that the young generation will get benefit from this.”

The list of 10 universities include some very historical and popular universities. Here is a rundown of the 10 universities that have come on board the EFLI:

Lovely Professional University (LPU)

Located in the city of Jalandhar in the state of Punjab, Lovely Professional University is amongst the largest private universities in the country. It is a fully residential institution which offers graduate, post graduate, diploma and doctorate programmes across a variety of disciplines. It recently bagged the ‘Best Private University of the Year – 2013′ award from the HRD ministry of the government of India. LPU has tie ups with over 35 other universities across the globe and is a popular choice when it comes to universities in India for foreign nationals.

The university’s team will be known as the Tigers and the team’s colours will be orange and black. A tiger face will adorn the helmets and jerseys of the team as its logo.

Maharishi Dayanand University, Rohtak (MDU)

Located in the city of Rohtak in Haryana, MDU is amongst the ‘A’ grade Government State universities making it a premier institute. Apart from offering a multitude of courses on its own campus, MDU is also a collegiate university, whereby it has many other colleges and educational institutions affiliated to it with each of them offering their own courses of study for youngsters. One of the newest Indian Institute of Management (IIMs), IIM Rohtak, shares it’s campus with MDU. The university is famous for its rich sporting history as it has produced seven Arjuna Awardees and five Bhim Awardees, due in large part down to the excellent facilities that it provides for its students. It is rated by many as the No.1 university in India for sports.

The team will be called the Heros and its colours will be green, orange and blue. A man on a mounted horse carrying a staff will form the team’s logo.

Gujarat University (GU)

Located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, GU is a ‘B++’ grade university in the country. It is an educational institution that came into existence thanks to the recommendations of luminaries such as Sardar Vallabhai Patel and Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. GU too is an affiliating university with many colleges and institutions tied to it. Multiple time billiards champion Geet Sethi is one of the most prominent sporting alumni of the college.

The team will be known as the Lions and they will sport gold and black. A lion’s face upon a shield with half in black and the other half in gold will be the team’s logo.

Osmania University

Located in Hyderabad, Osmania is one of the oldest modern universities in India. It is ranked sixth amongst all universities in the Humanities, Commerce and Science streams. It is another one of those universities that draws a lot of foreign students.

Famous alumni from the university include former cricket captain Mohammed Azharuddin and notable cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle.

The team will be known as the Nazims and will wear the traditional gold and green of the university. And quite fittingly, a Nazim in green and white will be the logo of the team.

Punjab University

Located in Chandigarh, the university is one of the top institutions in the region and has 188 colleges affiliated to it. Times Higher Education’s (THE) World University Rankings had named the college in the 226-250 bracket in the world. The campus is centered around a self-sustaining township. The university also hosts close to 70 inter-collegiate sports events every year along with five inter-university meets.

The team will be called the Warriors and they will wear blue and red. Two crossed red swords will be the logo of the team.

Chandigarh University

Bearing affiliations with five internationally reputed universities, the rather young Chandigarh University, founded in 2009, has already made a mark as one of India’s best private universities.

The team will be called the Cheetahs and will adorn black and red as the team colours. A cheetah’s claw print in black and red will be the team’s logo.

University of Madras

A public state university located in Chennai, it is one of the three oldest universities in India (along with the University of Mumbai and University of Calcutta) and is the mother of all universities in South India as it led to the birth of many of the other universities in the region such as Mysore University and Osmania University. It is a collegiate university which has been conferred Five Star Status by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC).

The University plays host to a number of major sporting tournaments every year, being the biggest university in Southern India right from cricket, badminton, basketball, tennis and football. It even has a Department of Physical Education and Sports which goes about promoting sporting activities and provides over 17,000 students from its various affiliated colleges with competitive experience.

The team will be called the Stars and will turn out in green and dark blue. Its logo is a slight variant of a star in green, dark blue and white.

Auro University

Auro University is located in Surat, Gujarat and is a relative newbie having been founded only in 2011. It specializes in hospitality and management, even offering Tourism Management as an option.

The team will be called the Blues and teams colours will be gold and black.The logo is a stylized version of the letter ‘A’ in capital, in blue and black.

Lakshmi Narain College of Technology (LNCT) (1994)

Located in Bhopal in the state of Madhya Pradesh, LNCT was amongst the first private engineering colleges in the state which came into being thanks to sponsorship from both the central and state governments. It has numerous sister institutions in the cities of Bhopal, Indore, Bilaspur, Jabalpur and Gwalior.

The team will be called the Champions and teams colours are navy blue and red. The logo is an ancient warrior helmet in red and navy blue.

Jain University

Jain University is a deemed university in Bangalore. It is managed by the Jain University Trust which oversees the running of over 85 educational institutions in the country. 12 colleges and centers make up the university. The university is popular for encouraging unconventional sports in the country as it regularly makes up the winners’ list when it comes to sports such as baseball, rugby and now has taken up American football as well.

The team will be called the Southern Champs and will wear maroon, red and blue. The letters ‘S’ and ‘C’ in blue in capitals make up the logo and will feature on the helmet as well.