Staff Corresponden
CHITRAL: Kamal Abdul Jamil, Chief Executive of the Chitral Football League (CFL), has been honoured with the Visionary CEO Award at the Pakistan Business Excellence Summit in recognition of his vision and services for promoting football and using sports as a means of youth engagement and wellbeing, peacebuilding, social cohesion, community development, and creating opportunities for the local economy.
Kamal Abdul Jamil said the Chitral Football League had demonstrated that football was much more than a sport or recreational activity and had the potential to develop into a fully fledged industry. It could create new opportunities in tourism, hospitality, transport, local businesses, positive youth engagement, social cohesion, and community development.
Speaking to the media on the occasion, Kamal Abdul Jamil said that the summit, a unique event of its kind at the national level, brought together prominent personalities from various walks of life. However, he was the only representative of the sports sector, particularly football.
He said this reflected the role played by the Chitral Football League over its six-year journey in connecting football with the business sector. He added that while recognition for a football event might come as a surprise to many participants at the summit, CFL was not merely a football tournament but an initiative that was directly influencing several other important sectors of society.
He noted that football had become a major industry in Europe, North and South America, and the Gulf countries. Pakistan, he said, must also recognise football as an industry rather than merely a sport. He urged the government, corporate sector, and media to play an effective role in promoting football and provide the sector with the support and resources it deserved.
The CFL chief executive also expressed gratitude to all the league’s partners, sponsors, and supporters, acknowledging their valuable contributions to its journey. He reaffirmed his commitment to continuing efforts to bring lasting and positive change to society through sports, create opportunities for young people, and promote community development.
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