Former President of the Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL) Jaswar Umar will be running for the top seat again in the upcoming election on 29 September. The Sunday Morning Sports had a chat with the former President regarding his immediate plans to revive football in Sri Lanka.
Following are excerpts from the interview:
Getting the FIFA ban lifted was great news, wasn’t it?
It was the happiest news for me as a football administrator and football lover. Many of us worked very hard towards this. We sought legal remedies in the Court of Appeal to make all necessary parties agree on the terms that FIFA imposed on us.
We spent more than seven months by legal means and through various discussions with all parties. Finally, for the sake of the country and football, we arrived at a settlement in the court and agreed to comply with FIFA’s conditions. We all thank the Minister of Sports for coming forward to accept FIFA’s terms to lift this ban.
Football has been at a standstill for some time. How can we get back on track?
We have many plans for this. We have vast experience in doing this as football was at a standstill in 2019 after the Easter attacks and then from 2019 to 2021 during the Covid-19 pandemic. Again in 2021 we restarted football in every segment. We will now focus on bringing club, school, youth, women, and national team football back on its feet again.
You and Dr. Manil shook hands and decided to work together. How did that happen?
This was a historical moment for football. Ranjith Rodrigo and Dr. Manil are two pioneers in football. Them joining me is a great strength for our game. We looked at the current situation in the country and had many discussions with an open mind and arrived at a consensus on the national football policy. The country will see a new football culture with transparency, accountability, and accelerated development.
What short-term plans do you have to get the national team back on its feet?
We are going to introduce my pet project with Aspire Foundation in Qatar, ‘Football Forward’. This project will bring Sri Lankans playing overseas and at international training camps to our national team, along with foreign and expert coaches, giving us the opportunity to play in many international friendly games, etc. This is a mega project and will bring short-term results while we build a stronger, long-term development programme.
What plans do you have at grassroot level?
While we support all regional- and village-level grassroot programmes with private participation, we will also build our own specialised grassroot centres. They will be equipped with world-class syllabi and facilities in time to come.
Will the Super League make a return?
The Super League will definitely come back with a new strategy and a stronger brand. We will reveal a new identity for the Super League after discussing it with our ExCo.
Will we see support from Qatar, like earlier?
Of course, Qatar is our long-term partner and friend. We will get more support for our development in the foreseeable future.
What is your stance on foreign players of Sri Lankan origin?
We are working on the legal process in getting their passports sorted. It will be done gradually.
What can we do to prevent Sri Lanka from getting banned again?
We will stand together to prevent a black mark like this ban ever happening again in our lifetime. All of us, including the Ministry of Sports, are working with better understanding and for the sake of our country.