Atletico de Kolkata have won two titles in three in the ISL. (Source: PTI File) Atletico de Kolkata have won two titles in three in the ISL. (Source: PTI File)

Atletico de Madrid CEO Miguel Angel Gil has spoken about the reason the Spanish club dropped their affilation with Atletico de Kolkata which plays its trade in the Indian Super League. After being part of the ISL for three seasons, Atletico Madrid dropped their association with the team which is owned by Kolkata Games and Sports Pvt. Ltd. which consists of former Indian cricket team captain Sourav Ganguly, alongside businessmen Harshavardhan Neotia, Sanjiv Goenka and Utsav Parekh. ATK had stake as image partners with the club with but didn’t have majority stake which stopped their expansion plans in India, said Angel Gil. Atletico Madrid owned 25% stake in the club.

“Since the majority holder of Atlético Kolkata does not allow the development of the image of Atlético de Madrid through our Academy in India,” said Angel Gil to club’s official website.

“India is an incredible country, with a great potential. Atlético has done a great job in Calcutta. We have managed to make Atlético de Madrid loved and recognised, but we need to develop it there, working, in addition to a professional team, with the children, through our Academy. And this is something that we cannot do with the majority shareholder of the franchise,” he added.

Meanwhile Atletico will shift their focus to Mexico where the Colchoneros have invested in second division club San Luis de Potosí. There Atletico have a 60% stake in the club and the market promises chance at developing the image of the la liga champions in 2014. “We are working with hope on the project of San Luis de Potosí. Mexico is another great market, by volume and by culture. We have a majority shareholding, more than 60%, and it will allow us to develop the brand of the franchise and the image of Atlético de Madrid jointly, creating synergies between both. Having the majority of the capital allows us to have a long-term project; it allows us to implement our Academy there,” said Gil who is also the majority shareholder in the Spanish team.

“We are going to work very hard to take Atlético de San Luis to the elite of Mexican football. I am convinced that the fans, who already feel proud of their club, will enjoy their team in this new stage.”

Since Atletico Madrid’s exit from the Kolkata based ISL club, the team has been renamed to ATK – Amar, Tomar, Kolkata.

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