Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Wednesday proposed to collaborate with LaLiga, Spain's premier professional football league, for setting up a Football Excellence Centre in the state and boosting its sports infrastructure.

The CM, during his visit to the European country, pitched for using the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode for setting up the football centre, launching sports infrastructure upgradation and Spanish coaching-based youth training programme in Madhya Pradesh in partnership with LaLiga.

Yadav started the first day of his Spain tour by visiting the LaLiga headquarters in Madrid, where he met senior officials and held a dialogue focused on sports, youth empowerment and investment cooperation, an official release said in Bhopal.

He said the benefits of LaLiga's sports expertise and global reach should benefit the youth of Madhya Pradesh as he pushed for making the state a leader in sporting field.

This tour is not just a formal visit, but a symbol of the state's determination towards innovation, social inclusion and international partnership in the field of sports, the release quoted Yadav as saying on the occasion.

The CM proposed to officials and technical directors of LaLiga that a Football Excellence Centre, sports infrastructure upgradation and Spanish coaching-based youth training programme should be started in Madhya Pradesh on the PPP model.

This partnership with LaLiga will not be limited to sports only, but it can give a new direction to employment generation, social participation, international branding and cultural tourism in the state, he noted.

Yadav suggested that Madhya Pradesh's cultural diversity, wildlife, heritage sites and tourism opportunities can be effectively promoted among a wide audience in Spain and Europe through digital and ground co-branding campaigns during LaLiga matches.

This will strengthen the possibilities of attracting foreign investment not only in tourism, but also in sectors like sports tourism, fitness, media broadcasting and sports tech, he maintained.

Yadav, while referring to Madhya Pradesh's 18 sector-specific industrial policies and visionary initiatives like 'Start Your Business in 30 Days', invited global investors associated with LaLiga to invest in the central state.

He praised LaLiga's long-term expertise and its activeness in India in areas like skill development of youth, talent identification through football academies, and community participation, and said Madhya Pradesh will make sports a powerful medium of social development through this collaboration.

LaLiga is not only a symbol of sporting excellence but also an influential platform for youth training, technical collaboration and brand expansion globally. The popular league's activities in India, especially initiatives like LaLiga Football Schools, show that Spanish football has developed a deep connection with youth in the Asian country, Yadav noted.

"Now, this relationship can open the door to new opportunities for a promising state like Madhya Pradesh," he said.

Yadav, speaking to the media after holding discussions with senior officials at La Liga headquarters in the capital of Spain, said the environment created for sports in India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given talents an opportunity to reach the international stage.

Sports is no longer just a competition, but is linked to the personality, career and global identity of the youth of India, he insisted.

Yadav stated that with the cooperation of the Government of India and the Ministry of Sports, Madhya Pradesh is also moving ahead in development of sports at every level.

He informed that when Prime Minister Modi described a small village in Shahdol district as the "football capital" of India, it was not just a compliment, but a sign of recognising the hidden strength of the country.

The Chief Minister highlighted that from Shahdol to Bhopal, infrastructure for all sports, including football, is being strengthened in the state.

Yadav asserted the state government is committed to providing modern facilities, training and opportunities to players to participate in global competitions.

By learning from the experiences of countries like Spain, football will be given a new direction in Madhya Pradesh too. Work is being done on the possibilities of technical cooperation, training centres, and participation in international tournaments to hone talents, he averred.

Yadav said during his stay in Spain, along with attending industrial investment programmes, he also held high-level meetings with representatives and officials from the sports sector.

"Our goal is to make Madhya Pradesh a leader not only in industry, tourism or education, but also in the field of sports," he emphasised.

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