Swiss body inks pact with Maha education group over sports course

The International Centre for Sports Studies, a Switzerland-based educational body which is connected with world football governing body FIFA, on Monday signed an MoU with a Maharashtra-based group of educational institutions, offering an executive programme in sports management.

The deal was signed by CIES President Pierre Cornu and Mahatma Education Society's Pillai Group of institutions' chairman Dr K M Vasudevan Pillai in the presence of Maharashtra Minister of Sports and Education Vinod Tawde.

With the exponential growth of sports, CIES and FIFA had established the FIFA-CIES University Network in 2004 "to give the broadest possible vision of management in modern sports".

The tie-up between the Maharashtra-based institution and the Switzerland-based University is the 16th such instance globally and the first in South Asia, it was announced at a media conference.

"We are proud that our alumni include nationally and international known athletes who have participated in the Olympic Games, the Commonwealth Games (shooter Ayonika  Paul), Indian Premier League (Mumbai Ranji batsman Suryakumar Yadav) and Indian Super League (Rahul Bheke).

"We are therefore convinced that part of the FIFA-CIES University Network will allow us to become a leader in the field of sports management in South Asia", said Vasudevan Pillai.

Pointing out to the proliferation of professional sports leagues in the country such as the IPL, ISL and Pro Kabaddi League, Cornu said that with the Pillai Group as local partners his university network will "train a new generation of managers and help them meet the multiple and complex challenges" in the world of sports.

The first edition of the executive programme is set to commence next September, it was announced.

(With inputs from agencies.)