The 38th edition of the country's prestigious football tournament, the Virat Gold Cup, is scheduled to be held from Chaitra 12 to Baisakh 5. The main organizer of the tournament, 'Virat Football Trust', held a press conference on Wednesday and stated that all preparations for the tournament have been completed. The tournament, which will be organized with the slogan 'Football Festival, Biratnagar's Pride, Virat Gold Cup', is being sponsored by 'Nobel Medical College' this time. The tournament, which will be held at the Shahid Stadium in Biratnagar, has been renovated and cleaned, while the work of constructing banners, hoarding boards and gates outside the stadium is ongoing, the organizing organization has stated. The tournament will be held at night. After the installation of floodlights in 2074, the Virat Gold Cup has been conducted as a night tournament. Eight teams from Nepal and India will participate in the tournament. These include Nepal Police, Tribhuvan Army, Machhindra Football, Nepal APF, Church Boys, Samrat Sporting of Biratnagar, Jhapa-11 Football Club and All Jharkhand Birsha Munda Football Academy of India. The Koshi State Government, State Sports Development Board, Biratnagar Metropolitan City and National Sports Council are the patrons and promoters of the

competition, while the Morang District Football Association will provide technical support. The

Trust Chairman Kishor Bahadur Shahi said that the estimated cost of the competition is Rs 1.5 crore. The winner of the competition will receive Rs 1.1 million in cash, while the runner-up will receive Rs 5 lakh. Similarly, the best coach, goalkeeper, goal scorer and player will be awarded Rs 15,000 each and the best player will be awarded Rs 51,000.

‘Various sponsors and co-sponsors have come together to make the competition a success,’ said Chairman Shahi, ‘The organizers request all stakeholders and sports enthusiasts to cooperate and participate to make the competition a success.’