Monday, Sep 07, 2026 00:15 [IST]
Last Update: Sunday, Sep 06, 2026 18:35 [IST]
DARJEELING,: Football fans in Darjeeling
were in for a treat on Sunday at the Lebong ground, where legendary Brazilian
captain Cafu scored a live goal during an exhibition match introducing two
newly formed football teams.
Cafu, whose full name is Marcos Evangelista de Moraes,
had come to Lebong to virtually lay the foundation stone of the proposed Sidra
Hills Sports & Wellness Resort on Arya Tea Estate, around 10 km from
Darjeeling town, along with the launch of two football teams, namely the
Darjeeling Warriors (DW) and the North Bengal Fighters (NBF), under the aegis
of the tea garden.
Cafu, the 2002 World Cup-winning captain of Brazil,
was seen playing in the exhibition match of the newly launched teams, playing
for both sides for 20 minutes each. Although Cafu scored a penalty for DW, they
lost to NBF by 3-1 goals.
Expressing his happiness at being able to visit
Darjeeling, Cafu said, “Soccer is a very beautiful game in every place and can
be a good profession for people and help in making their life better. For
children it can also provide education.”
He also said that he was excited to meet the children
there, while stressing the need for education in their lives along with sports
and family.
The 56-year-old former Brazil captain won the World
Cup in 1994 and 2002 and led his country to their fifth World Cup title in the
latter tournament. He also played in the 1998 final, which Brazil lost to
France. FIFA records him as the only player to have appeared in three
successive World Cup finals.
Speaking at the programme, Cafu spoke about the
importance of football if taken up professionally, while also urging children
to give attention to education and family along with sports.
Meanwhile, speaking about the resort, Arya Tea Garden
Director Viraaj Bansal said, “When we heard that Cafu was coming to India, we
roped him in to come here for one day. We want this area to become a sports and
tourism destination and no one better than Cafu to promote it. The hills and
North Bengal are filled with football lovers and today they could experience a
world-class legend. In the coming days, we plan to bring in more such
international sports personalities here.”
Speaking about the upcoming resort, he said, “This
resort is the foremost of its kind in India, with the government also providing
whatever help we need. Cafu has become the face of this resort by launching it
today. We also hope to develop football in this area through the clubs launched
today.”
“The passion and talent is here in plenty but it is
not being channelised properly. The sporting culture here is very informal and
scattered, for which we feel these two clubs will help in exposure and bridge
the gap with national and international facilities. With better coaching and
infrastructure provided to them, we will be able to make this scattered
industry more structural in nature,” he added.
The sports and wellness resort is part of Arya Tea
Garden’s tourism development plan and is coming up across nearly 40 acres of
land at a cost of Rs 215 crore. It will feature more than 100 luxury rooms and
villas. Guests will have access to a comprehensive range of sporting
facilities, including football, basketball, tennis and several other sports.
The resort will also offer All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs), providing adventure
enthusiasts with additional recreational opportunities. The project is scheduled
for full completion by 2031.
As for the football teams, DW will give priority to
players from the hills, while NBF will scout and provide opportunities to
promising young footballers from Alipurduar, Cooch Behar, Siliguri, Jalpaiguri,
Malda and Dinajpur.
The event was also attended by Ministers of State
Indranil Khan (Ministry of Youth Services & Sports) and Shankar Ghosh
(Ministry of Tourism). Both the ministers spoke on plans for infrastructure
development of the Lebong ground.
