Tamil Nadu women's State football league begins on December 1

The Tamil Nadu women's State football league will be held from December 1 to January 22 at the Nehru Stadium.

The winner of the State league will participate in the Indian Women's League (IWL) tentatively scheduled in Odisha in March 2022. (Representative Image)

The Tamil Nadu women's State football league will be held from December 1 to January 22 at the Nehru Stadium here. Six teams - Sethu FC, SDAT Excellence, Tamil Nadu Police, Thamizhachi FC, Minerva FC, Wow Women - will play each other twice in a 'home and' away' format.

The winner of the State league will participate in the Indian Women's League (IWL) tentatively scheduled in Odisha in March 2022. IWL couldn't be held last year due to COVID-19. In 2019, Gokulam FC won the title.

"The football ground [Nehru Stadium] is getting spruced up. A special thanks to the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu's Member Secretary R. AnandaKumar for making it happen. We will not be having a match every day, but after a two or three-day gap," Seeni Mohaideen, Chairman, Tamil Nadu Women's Committee, told Sportstar here on Friday.

Speaking about the growth of Tamil Nadu women's football over the last couple of years, Seeni said the sport has grown organically. "Our efforts paid off when the State junior girls' team won the National championship, and the State women's team won the Senior Nationals, both in 2018. Earlier, we used to have one player in the Indian women's team, now we have four: K. Indumathi, N. Sowmya (goalkeeper), A. Karthika, and B. Mariyammal. Tamil Nadu women's football is looking up," he said.