Hotfutting it

Residents of Hyderabad knew that they were onto a good thing when they viewed the promotional material for Hotfut, South India’s first roof-top football arena in the media that read "Want to unwind with friends at the end of the day and play five-a-side football in the heart of the city? Experience pro turf football with a view of the entire city and the wind blowing through your hair! Day or night, HotFut is always ready to take you into the game!” Another one said "Itching to take a break from the office regimen by indulging in a game of fast paced football without having to go all the way to the ground?”
"The unique concept of playing football on the 10th floor of a building on a busy road in central Hyderabad with scenic views of the city started in June this year. When Nikhil Dubois and Pavit Singh of HotFut Infrastructure Private Limited reached out to us about expanding to Hyderabad, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to bring this premier, yet convenient football experience to our hometown. It took us five months to build the two pitches and the peripheral infrastructure,” says Danesh Mistry, 27, who along with his brother Youhan, 29, and Ranjan Matthew started HotFut Sports. "We have been footballers all our lives. We know that terrace and cage football arenas are used extensively in countries like Japan, Germany and Singapore, and we have experienced them on our trips abroad.”

The HotFut roof-top arena and the team that put the concept sky high

"This rooftop pitch is mainly for budding footballers and those who are unable to pursue their favorite sport because of the lack of grounds and playing spaces in the heart of the city,” adds Matthew. The arena also comes as a welcome change for players who before this had no other option but to use the dust bowls of hard-mud grounds around the city. Many all girl teams are ecstatic after using the facilities at HotFut.
Hotfut has two state-of-the-art pitches, each one measuring 60 x 90 ft on the terrace of White house Building, Begumpet in Hyderabad. The entire playing space is completely enclosed by durable and high quality nets at a height of 25 ft thus providing a secure play area. Along with the nets, the foam-padded rebound walls all along side of the pitches provide protection and a unique non-stop game environment.
The pitches are ideal for five-a-side football (five players on each team). The arena is open to patrons of both genders and of all ages, with easy options to make current and advance bookings for single or multiple hours. The fun is not limited to only football lovers — HotFut makes the sports arena available for other sporting activities, including gully cricket, kabbadi, kho-kho, volleyball and yoga, as per patrons’ request. An informal 32-team tournament is also on the cards.
"The challenges were many in trying to execute this project and make it all happen,” says Youhan. "We chose this particular location as firstly, it had the most spectacular 360° view of the city and our famous Hussain Sagar Lake; secondly, being this high up means we have a constant cool breeze blowing which makes the atmosphere even more enjoyable for playing football; and thirdly, the building gave us just the right amount of space to build our facilities.”
Danesh clarifies, "But then, during execution we realized how challenging it is to build so high up, on a terrace, with no real mechanism to lift all our equipment and material, during the peak summer, with gale force winds always around the corner. We definitely had a lot of difficulties, but we kept learning on the go and with everyone’s help, made it all work in the end.”
HotFut aims to increase sports engagements in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad by offering the facility for hosting corporate and casual tournaments, leagues and sporting events. The icing on the cake is that along with its superb facilities, HotFut brings the highly acclaimed Arsenal Soccer School football coaching camp that focuses on long-term systematic coaching and mentorship for budding footballers.
There are few chances of injuries at HotFut as the game is played on artificial grass and rubber. The FIFA-approved turf has especially been imported from Holland. Futsal soccer balls are made of fibre and are slightly heavier than a normal football so they tend to bounce less and players have better control. HotFut also uses rebound board, which is 2.5 inches thick and three feet in height so there is no chance of the ball falling from the terrace. The nets are the same as those used at Wimbledon. The waterproof floodlights also ensure that enthusiasts can play well into the night.
Youhan holds a postgraduate degree in finance from the University of Nottingham and is currently a partner in Youdan Computers and Peripherals, one of the leading information technology and mobile companies in the twin cities started by his parents Rashna and Dhunji Mistry in 1991, and Youdan Sports Ventures, a limited liability partnership.
Danesh studied automotive engineering at RWTH Aachen, Germany, is a partner at Youdan Computers and Peripherals and Youdan Sports Ventures. "Our parents and grandmother Shireen Mistry have always been most encouraging in all our ventures,” he notes.
Matthew has an automotive engineering degree from Coventry, UK and a law degree from Delhi University. He is a patent agent and consulted on intellectual property rights in Delhi.
What’s next? "We want to take this wonderful concept to more cities like Delhi, Goa, Madras, Bangalore and Calcutta,” Youhan tells us.