IFMP Joins Hands With Saran Sports to Expand Match Poker India’s Footprint to the Corporate Sector

2021 seems to be getting better and better for poker in India. The latest good news to hit the headlines is Match Poker India’s foray into the country’s corporate domain. Match Poker India is the official Indian member of the International Federation of Match Poker (IFMP).

On January 19, Match Poker India announced its collaboration with Saran Sports to venture into India’s corporate sector.

Match Poker is one of the few formats where poker is played as a team sport. It has been formally recognized as a sport since 2017 and is a signatory to the World Anti-Doping (WADA) code. Played in over 60 national federations across six continents, Match Poker is viewed as a revolutionary approach that breaks away from the conventional poker format that involves an element of luck via the “random draw of cards.”

Talking about the association, President of IFMP, Patrick Nally, said, “IFMP is delighted to be forming a partnership with Saran Sports. Sanjiv has a long-term track record of organizing successful and engaging corporate events. As a recognized digital sport, Match Poker can really help corporates, even more so during this Covid impacted environment, to embrace innovative staff and customer relationship opportunities.”

Reiterating Nally’s sentiment regarding the collaboration, Managing Director of Saran Sports, Sanjiv Saran Mehra, stated, “Saran Sports is excited to introduce this wonderful mind sport of Match Poker to Corporate India, with all the benefits it offers I have no doubt we will see a very positive response. Being a digital and extremely fun sport, it proves to be even more relevant in today’s world and will certainly help with bringing out the best in an organisation’s workforce and performance.”

Introducing Match Poker into the corporate environment is an efficient and effective way of fulfilling HR requirements, such as employer branding, recruitment, onboarding, employee engagement, etc. Match Poker can be a handy tool for team-building and improving leadership skills. Moreover, this is a significant move to expand poker’s popularity to an elite segment of society.

Varun Goenka, President of Match Poker India, sharing his excitement about this launch, said, “I am thrilled to introduce this incredible mind sport to Corporate India! Match Poker is a skill-based team sport and will add tremendous value to all participating companies. Not only will it help develop numerous relevant skills for its employees, but it will also help them perform better and work together more efficiently and cohesively. Most of all, being a mental sport, it allows the entire workforce to come together and participate with men and women of all ages having the chance to compete on a sporting platform and is just so much fun to play!”