LAHORE, May 10: The thirty teams, which will participate in the first stage of National Football Challenge Cup to be held at six different cities starting from May 25, have been divided into five groups. The event, first of its kind, comprises four stages, at the end of which the top 12 will collect cash prizes amounting to Rs1.35 million, with the winners receiving Rs300,000, the runners-up Rs200,000 and the team making to the third spot Rs150,000.
The fourth will get Rs100,000, fifth Rs75,000, sixth Rs50,000, seventh Rs40,000, and the eight will get Rs30,000. The ninth and 10th will pocket Rs25,000 each and the 11th and the 12th Rs20,000 each.
The teams selected for the first stage are those which emerged to the top in the last national and PFF league, champions of four provinces, Fata, Northern Areas, AJK and Islamabad.
An official at the Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) said that the federation was still awaiting names of the teams from Sindh and Punjab since both had failed to stage their leagues.
Balochistan, Islamabad and Fata have organised leagues. It is in progress in NWFP and Northern Areas while Azad Kashmir’s status is still unconfirmed, he added. The federation can either block entry of the units, which have failed to organize league or ask them to nominate any other team and a decision in this regard will be taken by May 17, he said.
FIRST STAGE POOL POSITION:
A: (At Peshawar), HEC, Young Eleven, Dera Ismail Khan, Mardan Club Mardan, winners of Fata and NWFP leagues. Pool ‘A’ winner will take on Pakistan Air Force in a playoff.
B: (At POF Wah Cantt) POF, winners of Northern Areas, Islamabad and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. The winner will play PTCL in a playoff.
‘C’: (At Lahore/Faisalabad) Pakistan Railways, Wohaib Club, Lahore; Panthers Club, Faisalabad and the winner of Punjab league.
‘D’: (At Karachi) HBL, KESC, SGP, PIA, Navy, PWD, SSGC, CDGK, winners of Sindh league and Naka Mohammadan Karachi, Mauripur Baloch.
‘E’: (At Quetta) Afghan Club, Chaman; Baloch Club, Quetta; Police, winners of Balochistan league.
Seven teams from the first stage will join national champion Wapda, KRL, Army, KPT and NBP to form following two groups for the second stage:
Group-I: Wapda, KRL, winners of pool C, D, E, D’s No3.
Group-II: Army, KPT, NBP, winners of Pool A, B, D’s No2.
Top four teams of both groups will advance to stage three - Super League.
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