Gonda: The Open State Senior Women’s Football Championship began on Saturday at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, organised under the aegis of the Sports Directorate Uttar Pradesh and the district administration. The tournament is scheduled to be held from March 14 to March 18, 2026 at the Regional Sports Office premises.
The opening ceremony was inaugurated by Revenue Officer Rinki Jaiswal, who interacted with the participating players and encouraged them to perform with dedication and sportsmanship.
On the opening day, several exciting matches were played. The first match between Sant Kabir Nagar and Maharajganj ended in a goalless draw. In the second match, Meerut defeated Mirzapur by 1–0. The third match saw a dominant performance by Prayagraj, which secured a 4–0 victory against Aligarh.
The matches were supervised by Match Commissioner Ayub Shah, while the panel of referees included Manoj Tiwari, Ashok Singh, Vinay Kumar, Mohd Aaqib, Mehruddin, Sanjay Singh, Kumari Shalini, Kavita Patel, Kalpana Kumari and Riyaz Ahmed.
Several dignitaries attended the opening event, including Ravi Shukla, Principal of Saraswati Vidya Mandir, District Sports Secretary Rajesh Pandey, Neeta Singh, Phulwari Public School Manager Dr. Rakesh Srivastava, Jagdish Prasad Gupta, Football Association Vice-President Jaspal Singh Saluja, Football Association President Jyoti Singh and stadium staff.
The programme concluded with a vote of thanks delivered by District Sports Officer Ashok Sonkar, who expressed gratitude to the guests, officials and players for their participation and support in making the event successful.
