Indian Sports Academies Going Global: The Role of Pune and Delhi

India is going big on sports, and this time, it’s not just about international medals — it’s about infrastructure. The sports academy scene in India is exploding, and two cities stand out: Pune and Delhi. From Olympic training grounds to elite cricket programs, these cities are turning into talent factories.

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Pune: The Military Engine of Sports Excellence

Let’s start with Pune. Often known for its educational institutions and calm lifestyle, it’s now becoming a major sports training hub — especially when it comes to Olympic sports.

The Army Sports Institute (ASI), established in 2001, is a game-changer. Built under the Indian Army’s ‘Mission Olympics’ programme, ASI Pune supports seven Olympic disciplines:

●      Archery

●      Athletics

●      Boxing

●      Diving

●      Wrestling

●      Fencing

●      Weightlifting

With a mix of Indian and foreign coaches, sports psychologists, and world-class medical and nutrition staff, ASI Pune has helped shape Olympians like Mary Kom, Vikas Krishan, and Shiva Thapa. In fact, over 45 athletes from ASI have represented India internationally.

Another highlight? The Krida Prabodhini Scheme, Maharashtra’s state-supported talent initiative, with its Pune campus feeding into national-level squads across hockey, kabaddi, and more.

And cricket? Absolutely. There are rising cricket academies in Pune like the PYC Hindu Gymkhana Cricket Academy and the Cadence Cricket Academy. They’re gaining attention for their structured programs, video analysis tools, and pathways into Maharashtra state teams.

Delhi: The Capital of Cricket Academies

If you search for the best cricket academies in Delhi, the list is long and impressive. The city has become a magnet for cricket coaching talent — and for good reason. It’s the base for several ex-cricketers and BCCI-certified coaches who now run year-round training facilities.

Top academies in Delhi include:

These academies don’t just train — they build futures. Many graduates have gone on to represent Delhi in Ranji Trophy and even team India. The infrastructure in Delhi NCR is evolving too, with floodlit grounds, bowling machines, and tie-ups with nutritionists and physiotherapists.

Delhi’s Olympic Push

Delhi isn’t just about cricket. The Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium, one of Asia’s largest, hosts world-class wrestling and boxing training. The Chhatrasal Stadium, home to legends like Sushil Kumar and Bajrang Punia, continues to produce elite wrestlers through its grassroots wrestling academy.

The Sports Authority of India (SAI) regional center in Delhi supports over 20 sports and collaborates with national federations for talent grooming. If there's a central nervous system for Olympic sports in India — Delhi might be it.

The BPCL Push

In 2025, BPCL Foundation announced plans to launch five world-class sports academies across India. The lineup includes:

●      Volleyball and badminton academies in Kochi

●      Squash in Mumbai

●      Archery and hockey in Bina, Madhya Pradesh

Each centre will be headed by legends of the sport — Tom Joseph (volleyball) and George Thomas (badminton) among them. These aren’t commercial ventures. They’re structured to support underprivileged athletes and nurture grassroots talent.

BPCL’s strategy includes residential training, sports science support, and school integration. This approach ensures that athletes don’t have to choose between education and sports — they get both.

Superstars Giving Back

Several Indian Olympic legends have started their own academies to raise the next generation:

●      Pullela Gopichand’s Badminton Academy in Hyderabad, which has produced PV Sindhu and Saina Nehwal.

●      Abhinav Bindra’s ABTP Centres, which are tech-driven sports science hubs now spread across multiple cities including Pune and Delhi.

●      Yogeshwar Dutt Wrestling Academy, training rural kids in Haryana.

●      Gun for Glory (Gagan Narang) for shooting, with Project Leap identifying rural talent.

●      Mary Kom Boxing Academy in Manipur, combining training and education for teens.

These academies reflect a powerful trend: athletes are no longer waiting for the system to deliver; they’re building the system themselves.

More Than Just Cities

While Pune and Delhi lead the charge, other Indian regions are joining the game. Karnataka has launched its Centre of Excellence in Sports, while Odisha is investing big in hockey and athletics. Tamil Nadu’s focus on fencing and table tennis is starting to show results.

The Indian sports academy ecosystem is becoming a national network. One that connects metro centers like Pune and Delhi with tier-2 and rural zones where raw talent often goes unnoticed. Private players like Reliance, JSW, and Tata Trusts are also backing large-scale academy models.

Pune vs. Delhi: A Healthy Rivalry

While Pune has the backing of military infrastructure and precision coaching, Delhi thrives on legacy, cricket networks, and volume. It’s a good problem to have — two cities feeding elite talent into India’s national teams.

With the growing number of indian sports academy ventures, India is setting itself up not just for medals — but for long-term dominance in both Olympic and professional sports.

So, whether it’s the cricket academies in Pune or the best cricket academies in Delhi, India is clearly on a mission. Not just to compete — but to lead.

The Current State of the Sports Gambling Industry in 2025

On a global scale, the sports gambling industry continues to thrive, and one of the biggest drivers within the sector is the United States. Since the country opened up to the practice in 2018, individual states began to legalize sports betting, and the market has grown steadily.

The US continues to produce significant growth, and, according to ongoing projections, there is no sign of a slowdown anytime soon. To customers and investors, the market is attractive, partly because it remains a relatively new concept.

The Existing Picture

Current statistics show that the sports betting industry in the United States produced $31.89 billion in revenue for May 2025 alone. That figure represents an increase of over 7% on the income delivered one year previously.

The figures from May 2025 are the most recent, and as the year develops, future projections suggest steady increases through 2026.

Sportsbook customers have a vast choice of markets, and that growing range of betting options is one of the reasons why the industry is so prolific. There are moneyline odds, team and player props, NFL spreads, futures, and much more. Innovation is another factor, with operators looking for new ways to increase their customer base. It’s a healthy position that has built rapidly in recent years.

Consistent Growth

One key reason for sustained growth is the steady rise in states legalizing online sports gambling. When the US Supreme Court overturned an earlier ruling in 2018, it allowed individual state governments to make their own decisions.

Some were very quick to open their digital doors. New Jersey and West Virginia were among those that allowed online sports betting in 2018. Others were slower to react, and there has been a steady stream of new adopters since 2019.

The landscape is starting to settle down: Most states have decided on whether to allow sports gambling, but talk remains over who will be next. There is current discussion around Hawaii, Texas, and Oklahoma, and each of those populous regions could offer a major boost to US sports betting revenue.

Operator Innovation

Sports betting operators in the US aren’t simply waiting for more states to join the market. Each will know they must keep innovating and progressing in such a competitive sector. One way to do this is to offer new markets for the betting community to consider.

Esports is a key example of the betting industry taking on new events. When the first tournaments began in the 2000s, professional video gaming wasn’t an obvious choice for global sportsbooks to adopt. Over the years, however, the growing attention around eSports fixtures meant they had to be taken more seriously.

MMA is another example of a sport emerging from the fringes to a point where it attracts global interest. Sportsbooks were quick to spot the potential of organizations such as the UFC, giving revenue another boost.

New betting options have also appeared. Certain operators have implemented a phenomenon known as ‘Bet Builder,’ which allows customers to stake multiple wagers on a single event for the first time.

These and other new introductions are essential across the industry. They not only make things convenient for players, but they also help with engagement and boost every operator’s customer base.

Future Projections

Projections for the next few years continue to remain upbeat. Across the global sector, there are signs that gambling revenue will continue to increase until 2030 at the very least. Similarly to the United States, there are some countries where legalization is an ongoing process.

In Canada, for example, online gambling was made legal in Ontario in 2022. Since then, other provincial governments have monitored the situation, and the industry north of the US border is experiencing unprecedented growth.

In nations where gambling is legal nationwide, the sector is growing organically. In the UK, for example, revenue has been constant for many years, and although recent changes to legislation could potentially lead to a slowdown, the overall trend is upward.

A range of surveys have been carried out, and the numbers differ slightly in terms of actual figures. Each study, however, predicts significant growth over the next five years. A typical average suggests that the US gambling market will increase by around 7% annually between 2025 and 2030.

While there is room for more US states to join the sports betting industry, it will continue to develop at a significant rate. If the country reaches saturation point, the markets may settle down, but there are reasons to stay positive. On a global scale, other countries continue to produce increased revenue, and the overall picture is promising.

NCAA Men's Goalkeeper Rankings (Preseason Fall 2025)

Seniors

1. Nigel Van Haveren (FIU, Netherlands)
2. Freddie Lapworth (Bucknell, England)
3. Logan Erb (NC State)
4. Alec McLachlan (St. John's, England)
5. Devin Armstrong (NJIT)
6. Andrew Cordes (North Carolina)
7. Holden Brown (Indiana)
8. Owen Cornell (UIC)
9. Tenzing Manske (Georgetown)
10. James Lowell (Marist)

One to Watch: Nigel Van Haveren. Van Haveren is easily one of the most explosive goalkeepers in the college game. For a level of competition that is so heavily focused on goalkeepers simply not making errors, Van Haveren has come out of the woodwork to show that goalkeepers can be more exciting than a tall, lumbering figure in net. Hailing from Vitesse Arnhem’s academy system, Van Haveren may be one of the rare international goalkeepers that MLS teams could look to bring in. American (and English, by proxy) will be annoyed at his complete disregard for sound mechanics but his ability to keep his team in a close game with a game-changing save is rare to find in college these days.

Juniors

1. Wyatt Nelson (UCLA)
2. Aidan Crawford (Loyola-Chicago)
3. Jonathan Munteanu (Dayton)
4. Rowan Schnebly (Stanford)
5. Ky Mani Dade (Loyola Marymount)
6. Thomas MacAuley (George Washington, England)
7. Soren Russell (SMU)
8. Zack Andoh (California)
9. Franco Barba (Eastern Illinois)
10. Isaiah Goldson (Michigan)

One to Watch: Wyatt Nelson. For a goalkeeper that probably should have left college by now, there doesn’t seem to be much slowing down Nelson’s trajectory. The 6’3” Seattle Sounders product has one of the more impressive resumes heading into college and he’s primed to take over the coveted starting spot for UCLA, marking him yet another USYNT goalkeeper for the Bruins. Although Nelson fulfills the safety blanket feeling most head coaches are desperately looking for, the college game inherently gets sloppier as the season rolls on and that’s not necessarily Nelson’s forte. If Nelson can find success when the play breaks down, his stock will only continue to skyrocket.

Sophomores

1. Blake Kelly (Notre Dame)
2. Leo Ledin (Virginia Tech, Sweden)
3. Pepe Hinterschuster (Wofford, Germany)
4. Marten Brink (Marquette, Germany)
5. Filip Versterre (South Carolina, Denmark)
6. Declan Finnegan (IUPUI)
7. Jonah Mednard (Wake Forest)
8. Matisse Hebert (Wisconsin, Canada)
9. Spencer Sanderson (Virginia)
10. Carlito Saylon (Tulsa)

One to Watch: Blake Kelly. RSL is known for producing a steady stream of, at the very least, college-ready goalkeepers and Kelly is the latest example. Kelly notched 12 starts for the Fighting Irish last fall before graduate student Collin Travasos finished the season, leaving a “what if” cloud hanging over the season. Moving forward, Kelly won’t have many opportunities to find a rhythm in the game, as Notre Dame’s defense historically does a decent job of negating shots. Now entering his sophomore year, most of Kelly’s defensive actions will likely lean a little more difficult than easy. If Kelly can embrace the sit-for-89-minutes-and-make-one-save mentality, look for Kelly to help bolster Notre Dame’s final four aspirations.

Freshmen

1. Joshua Grant (South Florida)
2. Patrick Los (Michigan)
3. Nick Bishop (Pittsburgh)
4. Alan Rutkowski (North Carolina)
5. Patryk Stechnij (Wisconsin)
6. Dylan Auffret (Penn)
7. Gavin Atkinson (Grand Canyon)
8. Owen Beninga (UC Santa Barbara)
9. Cole Kowalski (Notre Dame)
10. Dmytro Torubara (Georgetown)

One to Watch: Patrick Los. It’s been a while since we’ve had a 5’11” goalkeeper kick the door down in college but Los has as good a chance as anyone else that’s come before him. The Chicago Fire product was once touted as the next big thing when Slonina and Brady were garnering hype but the USYNT fanbase has largely cooled on him, despite his 37 professional appearances with Chicago Fire 2. Whether it was the lack of height or something else, Los has some doubters to prove wrong as he heads north. Keep an eye on the USYNT goalkeeper to see if he can unseat returning starter Isaiah Goldson or if he’ll have to play the waiting game like almost every other freshman.

Past Collegiate Goalkeeper Rankings

2024: Preseason
2023: Preseason and Final
2022: Preseason and Final
2021: Preseason and Final
2020: Preseason and Final
2019: Preseason and Final
2018: Preseason and Final
2017: Preseason and Final
2016: Preseason and Final
2015: Preseason and Final
2014: Preseason and Final

NCAA Women's Goalkeeper Rankings (Preseason Fall 2025)

Seniors

1. Teagan Wy (California)
2. Pauline Nelles (Arizona State, Germany)
3. Olivia Pratapas (NC State)
4. Keara Fitzgerald (Washington State)
5. Jordan Brown (Georgia)
6. Ally Lynch (Purdue)
7. Addy Holgorsen (Clemson)
8. Camryn Miller (Cincinnati)
9. Bella Hollenbach (Milwaukee)
10. Kamryn Willoughby (Eastern Washington)

11. Shea Vanderbosch (Syracuse)
12. Caroline Duffy (Oklahoma)
13. Ally Zazzara (Tennessee)
14. JLo Varada (Campbell, Puerto Rico)
15. Jordan Nytes (Colorado)
16. Cara Martin (Georgetown)
17. Sally Rainey (Indiana)
18. Cassie Coster (Monmouth)
19. Blythe Braun (Syracuse)
20. Belle Okoroafo (Michigan State)

One to Watch: Keara Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald enters the 2025 season with hopes of finishing her long and winding road on a positive note, while Washington State looks to recapture some of the magic in their 2019 Final Four run. State’s middling past few years paired with Fitzgerald returning from ACL surgery raise some questions on what to ultimately expect to see, as it’s a situation that can easily go sour if one or two things turn the wrong way. However, if Fitzgerald can stay healthy and return to form, she might not only be able to get State to regain their postseason magic, but she might also give herself a chance at playing at the next level.

Juniors

1. Victoria Safradin (Virginia)
2. Olivia Bodmer (Rutgers)
3. Kate Phillips (Missouri)
4. Maddie Buckley (UC Santa Barbara)
5. Izzy Lee (Illinois)
6. Leah Parsons (UAB, Canada)
7. Abby Gundry (North Carolina)
8. Kyla Holmes (Yale)
9. Morgan Hobbs (UNC Wilmington)
10. Allison Deardorff (Loyola-Chicago)

One to Watch: Olivia Bodmer. Of Rutgers’ 21 games last season, 15 were decided by a goal or less, highlighting the importance of Bodmer’s play. There were certainly some low points in the season, notably Bodmer’s failed clearance against Maryland or the unfortunate deflection off the post against UConn, but the Jersey-native wasn’t afraid to put her body on the line to keep her side in the fight, as she did countless times last fall. Bodmer teeters on the cusp of good or great, depending on how much nuance Bodmer can instill in her game moving forward. Look to see how the upperclassman has added detail in her game as Rutgers will surely lean heavily on their goalkeeper this fall.

Sophomores

1. Liv Geller (TCU)
2. Hannah Johann (North Carolina, Germany)
3. Sonoma Kasica (Notre Dame)
4. Sydney Fuller (Texas A&M)
5. Jamie Campbell (Colorado)
6. Addie Todd (Florida State)
7. Sarah Wommack (Mississippi State)
8. Genesis Perez Watson (UCF, Costa Rica)
9. Jillian Medvecky (Pepperdine)
10. Nona Reason (Clemson)
11. Mariangela Medina (UCLA, Mexico)
12. Kennadie Marchand (Vanderbilt)

One to Watch: Sarah Wommack. Wommack looks to pioneer the Appalachian State-to-Mississippi State transfer pipeline as the freshman shocked opposing coaches with her continual rebuffing of opposing offenses. Now in the SEC, Wommack will have to take on even more responsibility as State’s expectations are at an all-time high, coming off one of its best seasons ever. Wommack has been granted the number one jersey for a reason but for a program that’s looking to move beyond a Sweet Sixteen appearance, Wommack will need more than athleticism to bolster the Bulldogs’ chances in November. If Wommack can continue to extend her skill set beyond shot-stopping, look for the rocket on Wommack’s back to grow even larger.

Freshmen

1. Lexi Baldwin (Mississippi)
2. Evan O'Steen (Florida State)
3. Molly Vapensky (Duke)
4. Caroline Birkel (Stanford)
5. Zoe Anderson (UNC Wilmington)
6. Nyamma Nelson (Northwestern)
7. Jacqueline Gabbert (Minnesota)
8. Kennedy Zorn (Michigan State)
9. Wicki Dunlap (Virginia)
10. Kaele Smith (NJIT)

One to Watch: Evan O'Steen. Although TST headlines were rightfully filled with Hope Solo and Lindsey Harris, the young Florida State commit had an impressive showing in the summer tournament at just 17 years old. O’Steen was active in organizing the defense, cutting off slotted balls into the 18, and playing well off her line in order to help maintain possession for her team. The confident keeper did well in most areas of the field but close range situations saw her caught between two minds too often. Assuming the YNT goalkeeper will get a chance on the field this fall, look to see how O’Steen does on a larger stage and in a larger goal with one of the top schools in the nation this fall.

Past Collegiate Goalkeeper Rankings

2024: Preseason and Final
2023: Preseason and Final
2022: Preseason and Final
2021: Preseason and Final
2020: Preseason and Final
2019: Preseason and Final
2018: Preseason and Final
2017: Preseason and Final
2016: Preseason and Final
2015: Preseason and Final