Protest brews among football fans over damage to EMS Corporation Stadium

Anger is brewing among football lovers in Kozhikode after the grounds of the EMS Corporation Stadium were damaged following the SuperCross motorbike racing league held recently at the venue.

The finale of the SuperCross Racing League Season 2 was staged at the stadium on December 21 amid a packed gallery and in the presence of Bollywood actor Salman Khan. The Corporation Stadium, which had already been handed over to the Kerala Football Association for conducting football matches, was temporarily allotted to the Racing League organisers for 15 days for ground preparation and the event, on the condition that the stadium would be returned without damage and that the organisers would bear the cost of any damage caused.

Ahead of the event, the stadium ground was covered with wooden planks and tarpaulin sheets, over which mud was piled to create the race track. However, once the mud and planks were removed, football enthusiasts were distressed to find that the grass had dried up and the surface had become uneven due to the weight of heavy machinery used for the track preparation. There were also complaints that the stadium’s drainage system had been clogged with mud.

The racing league was held at a time when the local body elections had just concluded, and the new council had only recently been sworn in. Corporation officials, reportedly preoccupied with election-related activities and subsequent proceedings, reportedly did not pay much attention to the event.

After the issue came to light, newly inducted Mayor O. Sadasivan, Deputy Mayor S. Jayasree and several councillors visited the stadium to assess the damage. The Mayor said the event organisers had promised to carry out repairs within a few days. He added that the organisers had deposited ₹25 lakh as a caution deposit with the Corporation ahead of the event, which would be utilised for repairs if required.