Pitch problems postpone start of India’s IPL-style soccer league

NEW DELHI, (Reuters) – The inaugural edition of India’s Premier League Soccer (PLS), featuring World Cup winner Fabio Cannavaro and former France international Robert Pires, has been postponed because of a lack of venues, organisers told Reuters yesterday.

“Discussion is on with the state government but even if it is sorted out by the end of this week, we would need time to prepare the fields,” Dharamdutt Pandey, CEO of the event management company which conceived the PLS idea, said by telephone.

“These are minor issues and PLS is very much on. We are now targetting a mid-April start for the league,” he added.

The six-team league modelled on the successful Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 cricket tournament was slated for a March 24 start in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal, renowned for its passion for soccer.