A NEW chapter in Fijian football unfolded yesterday when the Bula FC, Fiji’s first professional football franchise, was launched.
The event took place at the headquarters of the Fiji Football Association in Vatuwaqa, Suva.
Present at the event was Fiji FA president Rajesh Patel, who announced the office bearer of the club’s chairman, Marc McElrath, who remarked yesterday as being a historic one for the sport in Fiji.
McElrath mentioned how the launch was the realisation of a dream to see Fiji venture into professional club football.
Noting this, he added what the franchise would mean for young aspiring talents coming through the sport.
“It now presents an opportunity for every child, every teenager, every footballer in Fiji to become a professional player,” McElrath said.
“(It) gives them an opportunity to show their skills, not only here but overseas, on the international stage, and potentially lead them to a future in football in some of the bigger overseas countries.”
The appointments of young and seasoned football administrator Anushil Kumar as the club’s acting chief executive and Naziah Ali Krishna as its acting chief commercial officer were also announced by McElrath.
Kumar expressed his appreciation to Patel and Fiji FA CEO Mohammed Yusuf for “pushing me beyond limits and getting to where I am today (yesterday).”
“We all look forward to what an exciting journey we have ahead of us, in simple terms, this is a game changer for football in Fiji,” Kumar added.
For Ali-Krishna, she expressed her enthusiasm to work with the media in helping grow the sport in Fiji.
“You (the media) have a key role in identifying what’s important in sharing the message that football is not just something to watch, it’s a unifier,” Ali-Krishna emphasised.
Meanwhile, the club will have newly-appointed national coach Stéphane Auvray as its head coach who will be assisted by Marika Rodu.
