Football legends Luis Figo and Ryan Giggs said that U-17 World Cup will put India on the global map and could help in building a strong national team.

Giggs said that he thinks hosting U-17 World Cup will raise the profile of the sport in the country. People who have not seen football live can now see the best players in the world, the best countries in the world competing. It can give the whole country a lift, it generates so much exposure. Definitely the experience will help, Giggs said.

The Manchester United legend was accompanied by legendary, Portuguese playmaker Luis Figo for the launch of the second season of Premier Futsal in the capital.

FIFA Under-17 World Cup Director, Javier Ceppi said that this is a big opportunity to create a football revolution in India. “This, by far, is going to be the best football every Indian is going to witness,"

The U-17 World Cup will be hosted by India and will be held in October this year from 6th to 28th across six cities New Delhi, Kolkata, Guwahati, Margao, Kochi and Navi Mumbai. In 2013 the decision was made to host U-17 World Cup in India.

Figo was an important member of the famed Real Madrid Galacticos said "To achieve a professional level, you have to have talent, you have to train, you have to compete,

"To develop the sport, you need infrastructure; good coaches and competition and then it will be much easier to achieve quality."

He added, "We are promoting the sport (futsal) in India and in doing that I think we are not only helping FIFA but the sport in general.

"We are creating some modules to increase participation, to increase the interest and creating a base for the future.

Ceppi has also termed the prestigious tournament – FIFA U-17 World Cup – as a 'football revolution' in India.

Total 24 nations across the world, including hosts India, will take part in the tournament, with 52 fixtures and over 200 million audience global audiences are expected to witness the tournament.

"The tournament schedule will be announced at the end of March. We will get to know which stadium is hosting how many matches and the final too.

We have to wait till then. Not just Kolkata, other cities are also in the fray," he said.

Programme for FIFA U-17 World Cup launched

AMandeep