New Delhi, July 10 : There are not many footballing tournaments that have the rich and deep heritage like the Durand Cup. As the iconic footballing spectacle set for its 133rd edition, the trophies were unveiled by the President of India, Droupadi Murmu in an event hosted at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Center (RBCC) on Wednesday.

The unveiling of the three trophies was followed by a group photo with all the dignitaries present at the event. Following the photo session, the President, along with all those present, stepped outside for the flag-off ceremony to kickstart the Durand Cup trophy tour. The flag had logos of the team's participating at the event.

"The Durand Cup is the oldest football tournament in India. This is a tournament in which the winner wins three trophies: the Durand Cup, the President Cup and the Shimla Trophy. The tournament has been going on for almost 135 years. I've been told that the Shimla trophy was presented to the players by the locals from Shimla in 190. The first President of India, Dr Rajendra Prasad had gave the President Cup to the winners of the 1950 edition of the tournament and ever since then every winner receiving all three trophies is a tradition," said the President.

Among the many high profile guests at the event, the all time leading scorer of Indian football Sunil Chhetri was also present. The former Indian skipper, who retired from National football a month ago, spoke highly of the Durand Cup.

'It was at this Durand Cup, a long time ago when I got discovered. As a young kid in Delhi, I was discovered here and I got my big break and that's how my journey started. This is not just any tournament, it's a very important tournament with a lot of history, tradition, and culture and I could not be more happy to be here on this stage talking about the Durand Cup," said Chhetri at the event.

The 2024 edition of the tournament will take place across four cities at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan and Kishore Bharati Krirangan (Kolkata), JRD Tata Sports Complex (Jamshedpur), Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (Shillong), and SAI Stadium (Kokrajhar).

The 2024 edition of the tournament is scheduled to begin on July 27 with the final set for August 31. The tournament will consist of 13 ISL teams, five I-League teams, three services team, BSF (Border Security Force), CISF (Central Industrial Service Force), two local teams and service teams from Bangladesh and Nepal.

/IANS