Thursday 12th Feb, 2026
Mumbai: Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli has extended his wishes to the U-17 football team, gearing up to take part in the upcoming World Cup starting October 6. This is for the first time that India is organising a FIFA event, and being the hosts the team has got a direct qualification.
Sports minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore also wished the FIFA U-17 World Cup team, good luck. The minister, an Olympic silver medallist in shooting, met the squad in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Virat Kohli, who recently guided the Indian cricket team to their third consecutive ODI series win over Australia in India, looked a relaxed figure in a short video that he uploaded on Twitter to convey his wishes to the young Indian football team.Our boys are taking part in the U-17 FIFA World Cup which starts on October 6. Their first match is against team USA. I would like to wish them all the very best for the first game and the rest of the tournament. Go, get it boys, make us proud,” said Kohli in a 15-second video.This is the first time India are taking part in a FIFA event in any age group. The hosts are placed in Group A alongside USA, Ghana and Colombia.
The FIFA U-17 World Cup begins October 6, and will be played in various locations such as New Delhi, Navi Mumbai, Guwahati, Kochi, Kolkata and Margao in Goa. The final of the tournament will be played in Kolkata.India will play all of their matches at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi. With this tournament, India will also be setting a world record of hosting matches in farthest venues.
The distance between the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi and the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati is of 2,431 kilometres, which sets the world record of farthest venues in a FIFA event.
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Addressing the Indian FIFA World Cup U-17 players, Rathore said, “You are going to play the game of your life and every moment counts. When you enter the field, you should enter to win”
“Every game you play in the FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017 will be the game of your lives and the games will be etched in your memory forever, so play for your life and play to win.”