Bengaluru Football Club announced that it would be helping small businesses that have struggled to stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic, through their 2020-21 season campaign.
Launched via a video featuring club captain Sunil Chhetri, the campaign aims to promote, support and give visibility to businesses that have taken a hit during the pandemic.
In the video, Sunil Chhetri speaks to Bengaluru FC supporters and urges them to support the community in the city and help businesses stay afloat.
The campaign will see the club use its social media platforms as a stage to showcase local and hyper-local businesses throughout Bengaluru while encouraging the city to patronise them. Through the season, the club will make consistent efforts to talk about these businesses with the players leading the chorus.
"This is a campaign that we hold close to our heart, because this city and its people have been synonymous to our club and any success we have enjoyed. These are testing times for all of us, but it is the proprietors of small businesses that have taken the biggest hit. This season is dedicated to them, and we hope to, in a small way, be able to help them find stability once again," said Chhetri, on the day of the launch.
Bengaluru FC CEO Mandar Tamhane said there was added impetus in this season's campaign, with the club seeing a first-ever season without silverware, having lost out to ATK in the semi-final of last season's Indian Super League.
"As a club, we have enjoyed many successes in the last seven years, and a season without a trophy has, in many ways, seen us seeking some sort of redemption. The "Back on our Feet" campaign resonates with the vision of our club for the season that lies ahead, and is something with which we hope we can help the people of Karnataka in a special way," said Tamhane.
The club was founded seven years ago and has won the I-League, Indian Super League, Federation Cup and Super Cup in its short history. After the club's transition into the Indian Super League in 2017, it began to draw over 20,000 supporters on matchdays in Bengaluru.