Sportstar Aces 2023, Popular Choice: Gokulam Kerala FC nominated for ‘Club Team of the Year’ award

GKFC performed well for two consecutive seasons and dominated the I-League, which now is the second tier of the Indian football league system.

Gokulam Kerala’s victory parade at Kozhikode after being crowned the I-League champion in 2020-21. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Gokulam Kerala FC has been nominated for the ‘Popular Choice - Club Team of the Year’ award for the upcoming Sportstar Aces Awards 2023.

GKFC performed well for two consecutive seasons and dominated the I-League, which now is the second tier of the Indian football league system.

It won the 2020–21 I-League to become the first-ever club from Kerala to win the title. It also became the first team to defend the I-League title in 2021–22.

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In doing so, Gokulam also became the first club from Kerala to qualify for the continental competition – the AFC Cup.

In the 2022 AFC Cup group-stage opener, the club achieved a historic 4–2 win against Indian Super League side ATK Mohun Bagan, but could not maintain the momentum and was eliminated from the group stage.

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ACES AWARDS 2023

There are 27 categories of awards this year – five Popular Choice and 22 Jury awards.

The five Popular Choice awards are Sportsman of the Year, Sportswoman of the Year, National Team of the Year, Club Team of the Year and Sporting Moment of the Year.

The Jury awards are Sportsman of the Year (Cricket, Racquet Sports, Individual Sports, Track and Field, Team Sports, Parasports), Sportswoman of the Year (Cricket, Racquet Sports, Individual Sports, Team Sports, Track and Field, Parasports), Coach of the Year, Best State for Promotion of Sports, Best Corporate for Promotion of Sports, Best PSU for Promotion of Sports, Best College/University for Promotion of Sports, Lifetime Achievement Award, Young Achiever of the Year (Boy), Young Achiever of the Year (Girl), Best Talent Mentor (Grassroots Coach).

A new award called the Spirit of Sport is also being introduced. It will look at rewarding deeds of great sportsmanship.

There will also be a separate Chairperson’s Award for Sports for the Social Good, which will honour individuals or organisations that have used the power of sports to make our world a better place.

The event is powered by IDFC First Bank and supported by Indian Oil, India Cements, United India, Ramaiah University, Experimenta Science Center GD Naidu Charity, Finolex Pipes, LIC, BPCL, Samsonite, Big Basket, Nippon Paint, CRICHQ, Casagrand and Wordswork.