The AFC General Secretary was joined by Concacaf Secretary General Philippe Moggio and Executive Vice President of the United Soccer League (USL) Court Jeske in the panel discussion titled “The Greatest Show on Earth”.

VFF’s commitment and rapid progress in youth development were demonstrated in FIFA and AFC competitions where they reached the Semi-final in the 2016 AFC U-19 Championship in Bahrain and qualified for the FIFA U-20 World Cup Korea Republic 2017 as they went on to become the first Southeast Asian team to secure a point in the showpiece.

Through strong support from the Government, the TFF’s Strategic Plan, which mainly focuses on youth football with various objectives encompassing the establishment of systems, quality of infrastructure, coach qualifications and competitions, underlines their vision for football development for the period of 2016 to 2026.

The next phase of the 40-day virtual programme, which commenced today (September 19, 2020), will bring the total number of Member Associations engaged to 43.

More than 60 Youth Social Responsibility Ambassadors will be empowered with innovative and educational opportunities through which they can engage with fellow players and establish a network to support development post COVID-19.

British servicemen were first seen playing football barefoot on the sands around Colombo in the 1890s before locals soon followed suit. The new sport spread quickly to the southern and central regions, and eventually right across the island nation, and by the early 1900s football had become a popular, competitive sport among youngsters.

The game entered a new era after the nation earned independence in 1948. Four years later, the country's football governing body, the Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL) became affiliated to FIFA and the same year saw them organise the Colombo Cup - a four-nation tournament which also featured India, Pakistan and Myanmar.

It was in the inaugural edition that Ceylon as they were then known - the nation became known as Sri Lanka in 1972 - made their international debut in the tournament opener against India. To the disappointment of their home supporters, the Golden Lion suffered a 3-0 loss at the hands of the strongly-favoured neighbours before finishing the tournament with the wooden spoon.

Although they fared no better in the next edition with three straight defeats, the breakthrough came in 1954 when they came close to clinching the title. Cheered on by the home crowd, the hosts shocked holders India with a 1-1 draw in the opener. And despite narrowly losing 2-1 to Pakistan, they ended as runners-up after overcoming Myanmar by an identical scoreline in what was their first international victory.

The lockdown and suspension of fixtures has not affected the extraordinary growth that the ‘fan-first’ digital strategy has delivered in the last six months with the 2020 figures overtaking those achieved in the entirety of 2019 – which also included the AFC Asian Cup record total engagement of 890.2 million.

The four stadiums where the centralised matches are scheduled to kick-off in Doha will be dressed with the slogan – #FootballForHeroes – to pay tribute to the healthcare professionals – working tirelessly on the frontlines while reminding the Continent’s fans, players and match officials to remain vigilant in the fight against the pandemic.