Weidenfeller supporting Bundesliga Dream India | OneFootball

New Bundesliga Legend Weidenfeller gets behind Bundesliga Dream India

FIFA 2014 World Cup winner Roman Weidenfeller has joined the ranks of the Bundesliga Legends with the ex-Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper supporting the national finals of ‘Bundesliga Dream India’, which finished on 28 April.

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"I am delighted and flattered to join such a prestigious group of Bundesliga Legends, some of whom I admired as a boy when I started playing football and who achieved such great things in the Bundesliga," said Weidenfeller, who won the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil with Germany.

The former goalkeeper has joined the global network of Bundesliga Legends including Jürgen Klinsmann, Lothar Matthäus, Philipp Lahm and Claudio Pizarro.

Weidenfeller played in the Dortmund teams that won back-to-back Bundesliga titles under Jürgen Klopp in 2011 and 2012. He made a total of 453 appearances for BVB and was in goal when they won the DFB Pokal (German Cup) final in 2012.

Opportunity

Bundesliga Dream India - now in its second year – gives young Indian footballers the chance to train and play at the elite youth academies of German clubs. The national finals were held in Mumbai from April 25-29 with around 450 players chosen from regional trials battling it out to be selected for the trip to Germany in June.

The selected squads of Under-13 and Under-15 players will attend training camps at VfB Stuttgart and Darmstadt, before playing friendly matches against both clubs. The Indian players will follow a set training plan, drawn up by the DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga and the participating clubs.

Coaches from Stuttgart and Darmstadt were alongside Weidenfeller at the national finals in Mumbai, to help identify talent and pass on tips.

"It was great to see the enthusiasm and skill of the young players, there was some really good talent on show out there and I am looking forward to seeing how the final squads get on in Germany," said Weidenfeller.

The long-term aim of Bundesliga Dream India is to create a pathway to the Bundesliga for the most promising young Indian talent.

Naubert: "An exciting time"

"It is an exciting time for football in India, especially in terms of the growth of interest among youngsters under 18, overtaking cricket," said Peer Naubert, Managing Director and Chief Marketing Officer of Bundesliga International. "Bundesliga is the fastest growing league in India and we are highly committed to football on the subcontinent.

"The Bundesliga has always been a home for Asian players, to help showcase Football As It’s Meant To Be. Thanks to Roman, for supporting the scheme which establishes a route for young talented Indian players to train and play at elite facilities in the Bundesliga academies.

"We hope others will follow in the footsteps of Sarpreet Singh, who was the first player of Indian descent to play in the Bundesliga."

The latest Bundesliga Dream project in India is the next extension of an existing framework to support the development of football across Asia. Previous editions featured various youth teams from across the APAC region, including squads from Thailand, Vietnam, and China, as well as the Indonesia U-17 team ahead of the FIFA U-17 World Cup.

The Bundesliga continues to support the growth of football in India. Last year, Peer Naubert met high-profile Indian politicians, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi to outline how the German league plans to help develop football on the subcontinent.

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