Apollo brands a Manchester United tire in India

May 13, 2015

Apollo Tyres Ltd., in association with Manchester United Football Club and Youth Football International (YFI), has launched the Apollo Go The Distance Scholarship program, under the banner of Manchester United Soccer School (MUSS), to nurture young football talent in India.

At the same time, the tire maker has unveiled a line of special edition, dual branded tires for the Indian market. The Apollo & Manchester United tires are aimed at the huge following of Manchester United fans in India, and the company says the tire will be available immediately at select Apollo outlets around the country. The tire was designed at Apollo's Global R&D Center in Enschede, The Netherlands.

This dual branded, limited edition tire will be available in select 15 inch rim size from Apollo’s existing Alnac 4G range. Apollo says the tire has a modern and sporty tread pattern that is designed for superior handling in wet and dry conditions; shorter braking distance and low noise.

Mikael Silvestre, former Manchester United defender, launched the Apollo Go The Distance Scholarship program, alongside Marco Paracciani, Apollo's chief marketing officer, Satish Sharma, president of Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa for Apollo, and Phil Townsend, Manchester United’s director of communications and deputy chairman of the Man Utd Foundation.

The Apollo Go The Distance Scholarship program is underway this week at the American Embassy School in New Delhi. Two Manchester United Soccer School coaches, along with Silvestre, will show a range of movements and techniques linked to Manchester United coaching methods and then select six students from the 192 participants — one each from the U9, U11, U13, U15, U17 and U19 age groups — based on their skills. The selected students will be offered a one year scholarship by Apollo Tyres to train with Youth Football International in Delhi. From the chosen six students, one will also get an opportunity to join a week-long residential training camp with Manchester United Soccer Schools in the UK.

The Apollo Go The Distance Scholarship program will culminate with a United: Live event in New Delhi on May 17, which will also see the presence of Manchester United’s legendary goalkeeper, Peter Schmeichel.

For more information, visit www.apollotyres.com.