Event: Indian Super League (ISL) 2016 Opening ceremony
Date: 1 October, Saturday
Time: 8:30pm SGT/6pm IST/1:30pm BST
Venue: Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, Guwahati
TV Coverage: There is no TV coverage of the 2016 Indian Super League opening ceremony in Singapore.
Live Streaming: Hotstar
Overview
The 2016 season of the Indian Super League will kick-off with a grand opening ceremony at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in the North East Indian state of Assam on 1 October, Saturday.
The stadium in Guwahati, which co-hosted the 2016 South Asian Games in February, will see a large number of football fans from the North Eastern part witnessing the inauguration of the eight-team, 11-week-long tournament.
The ISL opening ceremonies have always had a good mix of Indian Bollywood stars' performances coupled with the local flavour of the host city. Last season's event saw Oscar-winning music composer AR Rahman and actor Aishwarya Rai lighting up the stage in Chennai.
2016 season will be no exception as top movie stars from the country, Alia Bhatt, Jacqueline Fernandez and Varun Dhawan are set to entertain the crowd with their performances in Guwahati. Home side NorthEast United's owner, actor John Abraham will host the ceremony. The team owners of the likes of Ranbir Kapoor and Abhishek Bachchan are likely to form a star cast on Saturday.
.@aliaa08 & @Varun_dvn are going through their final preparations ahead of the #HeroISL opening ceremony! #LetsFootball pic.twitter.com/wSD9uNyIT5
— Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) September 30, 2016
Co-owner of the ISL franchise Kerala Blasters Sachin Tendulkar is also expected to be present at the venue during the opening ceremony. Notably, the cricketing icon's side take on the home side in the season opener, which follows the opening ceremony.
"I'm extremely happy to get this opportunity to host the opening ceremony. It's a huge deal for my team as well as my people in the northeast region who have always showered the team with their love and supported us throughout," Abraham was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
Along with the Bollywood glitz, 500 performers and artists from the country are expected to make the opening ceremony a colourful affair in Guwahati before the action shifts to the field on Saturday.
TV Schedule
Bhutan: Star Sports 3 Asia
Bangladesh: Star Sports 3 Asia
India: Star Sports 3
UAE: Abu Dhabi Sports
Australia: Fox Sports 5 Australia
Celebrities performing in the ISL 2016 opening ceremony
- Varun Dhawan
- Alia Bhatt
- Jacqueline Fernandez
- John Abraham
