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Coca Cola, Hungama TV team up with Adidas for football challenge event
MUMBAI: With the football World Cup less than two months away one of Fifa’s global partners Adidas has launched the Adidas+ Challenge.
The event is being rolled out across seven cities in the course of the next few weeks including Delhi, Goa and Mumbai. The initiative invites young Indian football enthusiasts to celebrate football in the run-up to the 2006 World Cup.
Partnering Adidas for the event are ESPN Star Sports, which will air the Fifa World Cup in India, beverage conglomerate Coca Cola, kids channel Hungama and mobile content provider Phoney Tunes, The event will culminate in a grand finale in Kolkata on 28 May, 2006.
As has already been reported by Indiantelevision.com, as is the case in each global tournament venue, participating teams under 16 years of age will play against each other in order to represent India for the global Adidas +Challenge final in Berlin, Germany from 1-4 July 2006.
Adidas India marketing director Hartwin Feddersen says, “We are the world’s No.1 football brand. We constantly challenge ourselves to excite the youth through innovative products and extraordinary experiences. We hope that the Adidas +Challenge will allow Indian football enthusiasts to enjoy the spirit of team work and will challenge them to deliver their personal best at the same time through this innovative football initiative.”
Speaking to indiantelevision.com Hungama TV marketing head Siddhartha Kapur says the channel is on on ground sponsor for the event. “We saw value in partnering as kids aged 4-14 are becoming increasingly interested in the game. We therefore did not want to lose out on the opportunity to gain good visibility across the country. Later on we will be airing vignettes from the event.”
Coca Cola India GM G. Srinivas Krishna says,, “Coca-Cola is one of the longest-standing corporate partners of the Fifa World Cup since 1950. To energise this heritage with football and Fifa, we are proud to be associated with the Challenge event. The innovative initiative provides us with the ideal opportunity to bring the people of India closer together through football.”
As the official partner, supplier and licensee of the 2006 Fifa World Cup, Adidas will supply hundreds of thousands of products for referees, ball boys, stewards, volunteers and flag bearers. In addition, the host Germany, Argentina, France, Japan, Spain and Trinidad & Tobago will be wearing adidas apparel. Some of the world’s top players such as David Beckham, Michael Ballack, Steven Gerrard, Kaká, Juninho, Nigel de Jong, Zinédine Zidane, Patrick Vieira, Raúl, Juan Román Riquelme, Alessandro Nesta and many more will play in Adidas footwear.
Coca-Cola on the other hand has had a long formal association with Fifa. The firm was the official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup that began in 1978. To its credit, the company has had stadium advertising rights at every World Cup since 1950. This partnership in November 2005 was extended for another 16 years until 2022.
To find out more details and register for the event, enthusiasts will need to rush to their nearest Adidas Exclusive store, fill out a registration form, get it signed by a guardian and put it into a collection box at an Adidas store. Acceptance of entries closes four days before the start of the event in that city. The short-listed teams will be informed about their selection two days prior to the event. They will be sent a detailed kit on the rules and regulations along with the tournament match schedule.
NEW DELHI: Hamdard Laboratories gathered a cross-section of India’s achievers in New Delhi on Friday, handing out the Hakeem Abdul Hameed Excellence Awards to figures who have left their mark across healthcare, education, sport, public service and the arts.
The ceremony, attended by minister of state for defence Sanjay Seth and senior officials from the ministry of Ayush, celebrated individuals whose work blends professional success with a sense of public purpose. It was as much a roll call of achievement as it was a reminder that influence is not measured only in profits or podiums, but in people reached and lives improved.
Among the headline awardees was Alakh Pandey, founder and chief executive of PhysicsWallah, recognised for turning affordable digital learning into a mass movement. On the sporting front, Arjuna Awardee and kabaddi player Sakshi Puniya was honoured for her contribution to the game and for pushing women’s participation onto bigger stages.
The cultural spotlight fell on veteran lyricist and poet Santosh Anand, whose songs have echoed across generations of Hindi cinema. At 97, Anand accepted the honour with characteristic humility, reflecting on a life shaped by perseverance and hope.
Healthcare honours spanned both modern and traditional systems. Manoj N. Nesari was recognised for strengthening Ayurveda’s place in national and global health frameworks. Padma shri Mohammed Abdul Waheed was honoured for his research-backed work in Unani medicine, while padma shri Mohsin Wali received recognition for his long-standing contribution to patient-centred care.
Education and social development also featured prominently. Padma shri Zahir Ishaq Kazi was honoured for decades of work in education, while former Meghalaya superintendent of Police T. C. Chacko was recognised for public service. Goonj founder Anshu Gupta received an award for his dignity-centred rural development initiatives, and the Hunar Shakti Foundation was honoured for empowering women and young girls through skill development.
The Lifetime Achievement Award went to former IAS officer Shailaja Chandra for her long career in public healthcare and governance, particularly in the traditional systems under Ayush.
Speaking at the event, Hamdard chairman Abdul Majeed said the awards were a tribute to those who combine excellence with empathy. “These awardees reflect Hakeem Sahib’s belief that healthcare, education and public service must ultimately serve humanity,” he said.
Minister Seth struck a forward-looking note, saying India’s young population gives the country a unique opportunity to become a global destination for learning, health and wellness by 2047.
The ceremony also featured the trailer launch of Unani Ki Kahaani, an upcoming documentary starring actor Jim Sarbh, set to premiere on Discovery on 11 February.
Instituted in memory of Unani scholar and educationist Hakeem Abdul Hameed, the awards have grown into a national platform that celebrates those building a more inclusive and resilient India. For one evening at least, the spotlight was not just on success, but on service with substance.
