IFA-press-conferenceKolkata , December 26 : In order to revive the prestigious Shield tournament , the Indian Football Association( IFA) is mulling the idea of spreading the tournament across the country . Initially the plan is to host a few matches of the tournament in two of the most football crazy states of the country i.e., Goa and Kerala apart from Bengal . The IFA Shield , regarded as one of the oldest football tournament in the world had lost it’s shine and glamour owing to the I League and now ISL . Last year the tournament had to be organized amongst the U’23 teams of the clubs . IFA secretary Utpal Ganguly is extremely serious about reviving the glamour associated with the Shield . The Indian Football Association (IFA) is also going to revive the State League after two years . The top district based football clubs of West Bengal will be participating in this years State League which gets under way tomorrow at the Kanchenjanga stadium in Siliguri and Jalpaiguri Sports Complex stadium respectively . The final will take place on January 23 subject to a change as the first  I league derby is also scheduled on the same date . The State League will be played among the winners of each district league of 2014-15 season . This year teams from 19 districts will participate in the State League since Howrah could not organize their league during 2014-15 . The 19 teams will be divided in 3 groups of 5 teams each and 1 group of  4 teams . Each team have to  register three U’19 players with two of them featuring in the playing eleven . The basic idea is to spot the talent  in the remote districts of  the state . Teams of each group will play on a home and way basis among themselves and the winner of each group will play in the semi-final round to decide the top two teams that will play in the final to win the Officer’s Choice State League . The champions will receive a cash award of 2 lakhs while the runner up will take away 1 lakh . Speaking on the occasion , Mr Utpal Ganguly , Hony secretary of IFA said ,“ We are extremely grateful for the support extended by Officers’ Choice who prior to agreeing to be the Title Sponsor for the State League for next 4 years have also agreed to be the Title Sponsor for Premier Division-A of Calcutta Football League for 4 years . With their support and commitment for promotion of the football in Bengal , I am confident that together we wull be able to take Bengal football to a new height .” IFA have organized a sponsor for each of the 19 districts . According to Mr Utpal Ganguly ,“ With sponsors supporting the teams , the districts will also be encouraged to build a strong squad . Basic idea is to develop the football in the state . IFA inreturn will take 20% share of the gate sales .”

IFA mulling the idea of  hosting Shield matches  in Goa and Kerala