I reached the venue around 12:05 pm, and the teams had already stepped out to warm up ahead of the 12:30 pm start. A couple of hundred people had turned up after hearing the announcements, and the atmosphere was festive. There were balloons, flags, and food — it felt more like a carnival. The start of the RevSportz Empowerment Cup, the interstate open women’s football tournament, stood out for the passion of the players.
As I was being introduced to the two teams, the first thing that struck me was the number of married women in the team from Purulia. You know, if you know. These are relatively underprivileged women, and seeing them play football after marriage is nothing short of a social revolution. They had travelled by train on Friday to come and play on Saturday. While I am conscious that the money spent on the competition will not be recovered, seeing each of these girls train and then play more than made up for it.
“When we mentioned the total spend for the tournament in the locality, a lot of people were surprised. Everyone asked, ‘Are you really spending this money on a women’s football tournament?’” said the local councillor. The very same words were repeated by TMC MP Professor Sougata Roy, who said it was his first-ever women’s football game. Minister Sujit Bose, who runs a prominent women’s team himself, had also turned up to encourage the players.
At the end of the day, we all started doing sport because we loved it. Beyond the money, fame, and return on investment, there is the pure joy that sport gives all of us. That’s what I felt when Number 14, Debonita Roy, scored from a good 20 yards with a rocket. If one or more of these girls go on to make a career in football, the tournament has indeed done its job. That’s real legacy — disruption, as I like to say all the time.
From the Trailblazers Conclave, arguably India’s best sports conclave by a mile, to the Empowerment Cup, we at RevSportz have travelled the entire spectrum. From the riches of the ITC Royal Bengal and its specially curated menus to the DYMA Ground in Dakshineshwar, it is sport that stitches these experiences together.
I am genuinely fortunate to be living the RevSportz dream. It is something I had always dreamt of — to make a difference to sport, to make a meaningful contribution to the ecosystem. If you were at the Empowerment Cup, you would know exactly what I am referring to. You could see it in the eyes of the women who played the two games on day one. The word that best describes it is hope. Hope and optimism. To bring these women to Kolkata and give them a platform to play — that alone is enough encouragement for us to keep pushing.
Sixteen teams means 200 women playing in a tournament that we have managed to stitch together for four years now. I am no less proud of it than I am of the conclave. As RevSportz turns four, the promise is to do more — much more — in the coming years.
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