Greater Noida: UP Yoddha- the Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, based franchise of Pro Kabaddi League, today announced a major strategic partnership with U.P.  Kabaddi league, marking their foray into Grassroots Kabaddi within the state. UP Yoddha, in partnership with Hindustan publication intend to unearth grassroots level Kabaddi talent in the State. The league will be played from the 1st September – 13th October 2019.

U.P. Kabaddi League which is in its second season, will feature 35 men’s teams and 8 women’s team from all over the state. The men’s tournament shall be divided in four zones played across Zone A – Agra (1st – 3rd September); Zone B – Kanpur (13th – 15th September); Zone C- Gorakhpur (9th -12th September); Zone D – Varanasi (9th – 12th September) and the finals in the City of Nawabs – Lucknow (10th – 13th October).  The women’s matches shall be held at Lucknow during the same time as the men’s finals.

Speaking on the association, Col. Vinod Bisht, CEO GMR League Games said, “We are delighted to partner with the U.P. Kabaddi League. Being a franchisee from Uttar Pradesh it is our duty to support talented youngsters from the region, find the right platform to develop their game and make a professional career. In the last few years, we have unearthed a few talented youngsters like Nitesh Kumar, Sumit and Surender Gill from the state and we believe there is no dearth of talent in India’s largest and most populous state. Our’s is a constant endeavor to keep unearthing more and more local talent, giving the youth a viable career option.”

All the matches will be played in the Pro Kabaddi League format and the scoring shall be akin the same. In the men’s category each zone will see two top teams qualify for Lucknow.

The team bifurcation for each zone is as follows:

Zone A – Agra – Eight District Teams

Zone B - Kanpur – Eight District Teams

Zone C - Gorakhpur – Nine District Teams

Zone D – Varanasi – Ten District Teams