The brand aims to bring out the hidden football talent from the north-eastern hinterlands Keeping up the spirit to support India’s budding sports talent, Asian Paints has come on board as the main sponsor of the first ever edition of North East Super 6 along with Ceat Tyres as the associate sponsor.  The tournament held in collaboration with ISL Club NorthEast United FC (NEUFC) is scheduled from October 25, 2019 to November 23, 2019. It promises to offer a national level platform for budding footballers from small towns to demonstrate their skills and encourage audiences to witness football as a sport reach new horizons. Since its announcement till the final date of registration, the organising team has received an overwhelming response from the local youth across the north eastern states. A total of 32 teams would be playing in each city. The matches will be played in nine cities across the eight north-eastern states of India. The preliminary rounds will be held at Gangtok, Itanagar, Agartala, Aizawl, Dimapur, Shillong, Imphal, Guwahati and Silchar till 17^th November. The winning team in each of the cities will play at the finals in Guwahati on 23rd November. Commenting on the launch, Mr. Amit Syngle, COO, Asian Paints Ltd. said, “It is a proud moment for Asian Paints to support a tournament that would handpick the budding football talent hidden in smaller towns of our country. The eight north eastern states are making their presence felt on the national map and deserve the best of opportunities presented to them. Given the exemplary football craze in the North East among the locals, it is the perfect opportunity for Asian Paints to connect with the consumer base here and come together to promote this much loved sport.” Renedy Singh, former Indian footballer and the face of Asian Paints North East Super 6 tournament said, “Footballers need high levels of fitness and practice to stay at the top of their game. A tournament like this brings a great opportunity for young footballers to stay in form and prepare themselves for national and international level participation. It is great to see esteemed brands like Asian Paints come forward to support the game in North East.” Ashley Pinto, General Manager, NEUFC said, “It is such a proud moment to be associated with Asian Paints in its endeavour to promote and encourage sports in smaller towns and cities. North Eastern states have an immense love for football and it was evident in the overwhelming response and registrations this tournament received across the states. It is encouraging to see such leading brands of the country offering a platform for upcoming players to get noticed and chart out a future for themselves in the sport.” Preethesh Shetty, Assistant Manager, PMG from the organising committee commented, “The football loving youth of the North East has come forward with such an enthusiastic response towards the tournament. It is great to see a brand like Asian Paints dedicate its efforts in supporting and encouraging the budding talent at a national level platform. An event like this is a brilliant opportunity to garner the football talent of today’s youth.” Amit Tolani, Vice President Marketing, CEAT Tyres said, “North East Super 6 is a great platform to empower local football talent. As a brand, it is a great feeling to promote a sport that is loved beyond measure in the north east. The tournament is structured in a seamless way to make the game reach multiple small cities before bringing the most deserving team to the finals.  We at Ceat Types are hopeful that this initiative would go a long way in making football love soar up and create never seen before opportunities.” Each player above 16 years of age is eligible for participation. Six players of each team will take the field and four rolling substitutes would be allowed. The duration of each match would be 20 minutes. The zonal winners of the Asian Paints North East Super 6 tournament will receive a cash prize of Rs. 50,000 and the final winner of the tournament will receive a cash prize of Rs. 1,00,000 (One lakh rupees).