Sports Infrastructure a US$10 billion opportunity; State-of-the-art Multi-sport Arena to open on 7thOctober with Kabaddi World Cup 2016

Mumbai, October 5, 2016: India’s leading urban sports infrastructure company TransStadia has welcomed the move by the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports to include Sports in the harmonised master list of infrastructure. By doing so, investment in the sector will be enabled, thus catalyzing the industry growth.

The Sports Industry is regarded as one of the largest industries globally, in terms of employment and revenue. India has the world’s largest youth population and is at the cusp for change. In most developed countries, sports contribute around 2-4% of total employment. In India, sports contribution to the total employment is just .05%. This sector-based recognition will provide plenty of opportunities for employment in India.

Hailing the proposal as a revolutionary one, Udit Sheth, Founder and Managing Director of TransStadia, said, "This is indeed good news, as infrastructure is going to catalyze this industry in India. Talent is there, appetite is there, but infrastructure is wanting. TransStadia has already set the process in motion by building a state-of-the-art multi-sport urban infrastructure project in Ahmedabad, which will debut with India’s very own sport by hosting the 2016 Kabaddi World Cup."

Mr Sheth added: "The Sports Ministry's proposal will be of immense help to companies in the sports sector to pursue the development of high-quality infrastructure. Companies like TransStadia will now find it easier to obtain better financing options. The revolutionary move from the government will raise the level of investment in sports infrastructure. We await the RBI to notify it now."

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in a release said that the Ministry of Finance, after a series of meetings and discussions with different agencies, including RBI, have decided that sports infrastructure will be included under the Harmonized Master List of Infrastructure Subsectors and that it will include the provision of Sports Stadia, Infrastructure and Academies for training / research in Sports and Sports-related activities. In this connection, the Ministry of Finance, department of Economic Affairs, has issued a Gazette Notification.

A World-Class Urban Infrastructure for Sports & Entertainment, TransStadia is leading the charge from the front and will provide a platform for sports to grow and develop in India.