Internship with Bhaichung Bhutia – Scoring my career goals
About the Author: Sumit Yadav completed his B.Com (Hons) from the College of Vocational Studies, Delhi University. He shares insightful details about his internship with Bhaichung Bhutia which he landed through Intern with Icon.
It was the summer of 2015 – I had graduated and was working for a travel-based startup in Gurgaon. After working there for almost two and a half years, I realised the monotony of the work and how my passion lay in football. Luckily, during that time, one of my friends told me that Internshala was giving an opportunity to intern with icons. Out of the 6 eminent personalities who were hiring interns, one was Mr. Bhaichung Bhutia. Soon after I applied for an internship in their operations segment, I received a call from Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools (BBFS) for a telephonic interview. Next, they called me to their office for a face-to-face interview. The interview went smooth; they were mainly interested in knowing why I wanted to make a switch from the travel industry to sports to which I replied that I had always been enthusiastic about football and that I felt I should invest my time doing something I truly liked.
A few weeks later, I got to know that I was selected for an internship with Mr. Bhutia. When I saw Bhaichung sir for the first time at BBFS office, I got numb. I had prepared so much for the day, but on seeing him, I couldn’t utter a single word. I started my internship there and was introduced to the operational aspects of the football industry. This experience made me realise the time, preparation, effort, and commitment that go into playing a single match of football. From counting the number of balls and bibs required for training and looking after the subscription payment to opening a new training centre – I got a vast experience of how the football industry functioned. Few weeks into the internship, I got an opportunity to handle the operational work for Oorja Cup 2017 organised by Central Armed Police Force where the selected team plays a tournament with the legends of Indian football. I took care of their travel, accommodation, arrival formalities, and game kit. During this tournament, I met with legends like Godfred, Abdul Khalique, IM Vijayan, Yusuf Ansari, Clifford, Renedy, Bijen Singh, Carlton, and Bhaskar Gangly. Imagine this – I am sitting in a room with the gods of Indian football sharing my inputs and ideas with them to ensure the tournament goes well.
The internship was getting exciting by the day and two months into it, Bhaichung sir offered me a full-time role at BBFS, and I couldn’t say no to the dream of being associated with football and working with Bhaichung sir too. I started my job as a career coordinator of Apeejay School, Sheikh Sarai, a training centre where I was responsible for dealing with the school management, parents, and the coaches who trained the students in football. I supervised the activities there to ensure we were giving the best possible training to the students. Then, I shifted to the social media marketing team where I was responsible for organising and executing events for BBFS and posting details about the events on their social media handles. Soon after, I became the manager of the Development Squad and managed a team of coaches, providing them with a road map for excelling in the field. Having completed my D license (Football Coaching License), I am now working as the senior technical manager and am responsible for hiring coaches, scouting and nurturing kids, and planning and executing the curriculum. Being in Hero Sub-Junior League for Under-13, an I-League match, handling the rejections of the team, and celebrating the wins – it was a dream come true for me!
The highlight of my time here has been my first ever international trip to Singapore as the manager of the Under-10 team for Singa Cup. It would be an understatement to say that I couldn’t believe my luck when they announced, ‘Here comes team BBFS from India’ and I paved the way to the field with the tricolor. I might not be able to express the feeling of staying close to the football field, but I can, without even a hint of doubt, say that shifting from the dissatisfaction of a cubicle to the thrill of a field was one of the best decisions I have ever made.
Do you want to relive the excitement of being close to the sports you grew up playing? Apply for some super cool internships in the sports industry.
