Hanan Shaah, Anarkali Marikar and Vedan light up the stage as Super League Kerala season 2 kicks off in Kozhikode

Kozhikode, a city that has always embraced football with passion, witnessed a spectacular start to the second season of the Super League Kerala on Thursday evening. The Corporation Stadium was packed to capacity, with nearly 29,000 fans enjoying a vibrant opening ceremony that featured music, lights and celebration before Calicut FC claimed victory in the season’s first clash.

Singer Hanan Shaah opened the evening with a musical performance, followed by Anarkali Marikar’s appearance with a song. During the half-time interval, rapper Vedan further electrified the crowd. Despite being only the opening fixture, galleries were overflowing, with fans still queueing outside the gates as the match began.

A laser show lit up the packed stands, while a banner expressing solidarity with the people of Palestine was raised among supporters. Dignitaries including Deputy Mayor C.P. Musafir Ahamed, Calicut FC owner VK Mathews, MLA  Ahammed Devarkovil, Kerala Football Association president Navas Meeran, SLK managing director Firoz Meeran, and CEO Mathew Joseph introduced the teams.

Also in attendance were Mathrubhumi chairman and managing editor PV Chandran, joint managing editor PV Nidhish, along with actor Basil Joseph and Supriya Menon, who added star power to the football festival.