The stunt is all set to light up the much-anticipated clash.

In an attempt to spice up the eagerly-awaited Kolkata Derby in the Calcutta Football League on Sunday, the Indian Football Association has arranged a pre-match spectacle to help further light up the fixture. There will be a professional paraglider from Chile who has been hired by the governing body to paraglide into the Salt Lake Stadium before the match and place the match ball on the designated stand.

With East Bengal and Mohun Bagan both experiencing impressive form, there is no doubt that the venue will be packed to the rafters for this much-anticipated first Kolkata Derby of the new season. It seems like the IFA wants to add a little bit of a kick to the game by creating this unique experience for the fans before the game and make sure they are entertained before proceedings begin as well.

Paragliding is itself a professional sport and has been contested in many tournaments like the Asian Games and has its own paragliding World Cup. While it can be quite the thrill for a viewer to watch the paragliding experience, it is an extremely dangerous task to come through with and the paraglider will need to be completely focused on Sunday in order to land on the stadium turf from a long way up.

A similar attempt was made in the Portuguese Cup Final last year

It seems like the IFA has taken inspiration from the Portuguese Cup final last year, which also had some pre-match shenanigans to help entertain the fans. Before the Cup final between Benfica and Vitoria de Guimaraes, there was a man on a spider-like drone who flew in from a long distance to deliver the match-ball prior to kick-off. This schtick involving the paragliders has been done in many football leagues all over the world, but it is the first time it is set to take place in India.

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But, the IFA will hope that the professional they hire is completely sure of what he’s doing and it doesn’t end up as a failure. In an Ecuadorian league match in 2012, a similar stunt was performed by a paraglider who completely missed his timing and ended up crashing with a player who was involved in the pre-match practice before the game.

While that is unlikely to be repeated at a match of a grand scale as the Kolkata Derby, the IFA will hope that this ambitious stunt clicks off perfectly for them. It can help give the fixture further mainstream attention and make sure that this seasons’ CFL match between the Kolkata giants is remembered for a long time.