Kerala Blasters are planning to use the EMS Stadium in Kozhikode as their second home ground…
Indian Super League (ISL) side Kerala Blasters have submitted a proposal to the Kozhikode District Football Association regarding the renovation of the EMS Stadium to fit the league standards.
While the Kochi-based club has no immediate plans to permanently shift their home venue, talks to conduct a few matches and football activities in Kozhikode have been ongoing since November last year. As a follow-up, the officials of Blasters and the District FA held another meeting in the presence of the city mayor to discuss the project on June 10.
To meet the standards of the league, work needs to be done to improve the pitch, gallery, floodlights and broadcast facilities. The suggestions submitted by the club will cost around 13 crore INR. The deadline for the works to be completed is set for May 2021, with an inspection by ISL officials likely to follow in September 2021. The technical committees of the club and the Municipal Corporation is set to discuss the further steps later this week.
Although the stadium is currently being used as a home ground by I-League club Gokulam Kerala, there are no guidelines against the sharing of the stadium. Blasters have also received the green signal from the ISL authorities to go ahead with the plan to bring the ISL atmosphere to the Malabar region.
It has also been learnt that the officials of the football body in Kozhikode are keen to host ISL matches at the EMS Stadium. If everything goes according to plan, the stadium could be the venue for a few ISL matches of Blasters but not before the 2021-22 season.
Blasters have also stated that they will not be able to invest a lot of money into this plan but have offered a small-scale investment, the details of which will be discussed in the meetings to come.
The Yellow Army, which came into existence in 2014, has helped wake up the football-loving stadium-goers in Kerala in the last six years despite a lack of success in terms of trophies. By making their presence felt in the Malabar region which is known for their love for the sport, the ISL club and the league will be hoping to gain and engage with a lot more fans.
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