CM inaugurates Durand Cup

kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee inaugurated the Indian Oil Durand Cup at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan on Tuesday evening.

She kicked off a football and marked the beginning of the tournament. A match was played between Mohammedan Sporting Club and Goa FC.

The tournament is being held in Kolkata from 2019 following the initiative of Mamata Banerjee. She went to the players and greeted them.

Durand Cup started in Shimla in 1888. It is the oldest existing club football tournament in Asia and third oldest in the world.

Over the years, Mohun Bagan and East Bengal had lifted the trophy 32 times, 16 times each.The tournament is named after Sir Henry M Durand who was a senior official of the British government between 1884- 1894. Initially it was restricted to various army regiments. Mohammadan Sporting was the first Indian club to lift the trophy in 1940.