Nivia Sports is an Indian corporate and

sports equipment Sports equipment, sporting equipment, also called sporting goods, are the tools, materials, apparel, and gear used to compete in a sport and varies depending on the sport. The equipment ranges from balls, nets, and protective gear like helmets. ...

manufacturing industry founded in 1934 at

Sialkot Sialkot ( ur, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of Sialkot District and the 13th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined with Jammu (the winter capital of Indian administered Jammu and Ka ...

and named Freewill Sports Pvt Ltd. Later the company shifted to

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

and finally headquartered in

Jalandhar Jalandhar is the third most-populous city in the Indian state of Punjab and the largest city in Doaba region. Jalandhar lies alongside the Grand Trunk Road and is a well-connected rail and road junction. Jalandhar is northwest of the state ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

, India which designs and manufactures sports equipment, accessories, and

sportswear Sportswear or activewear is clothing, including footwear, worn for sport or physical exercise. Sport-specific clothing is worn for most sports and physical exercise, for practical, comfort or safety reasons. Typical sport-specific garments ...

including athletic clothes, and footwear. It has been the official ball partner for most reputed national and international leagues and tournaments including Hero Indian Super Leagues, BFI the

Basketball Federation of India The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) is the governing and controlling body of basketball in India. It is responsible for the development and promotion of the sports authority of India at all levels. BFI manages all the national-level basketba ...

All India Football Federation The All India Football Federation (AIFF) is the national governing body of football in India. It is a member of FIFA, the international governing body of football and affiliated to Asian Football Confederation. It is affiliated to Ministry o ...

Volleyball Federation of India The Volleyball Federation of India (VFI) is the governing body of volleyball in India. History The Volleyball Federation of India was formed in the year 1951. Prior to the formation of the Volleyball Federation of India (VFI), the game was contro ...

Sri Lanka Super League Sri Lanka Super League ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා ප්‍රිමියර් ලීග්; ta, இலங்கை சூப்பர் லீக்), is the men's professional top tier football league in Sri Lankan football league ...

. Nivia's basketball has received certification from

FIBA The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its na ...

, the

International Basketball Federation The International Basketball Federation (FIBA ; French: ) is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the (hence FIBA), in 1989 it dropped the word ''amateur'' from its na ...

. Nivia Sports is one of the homegrown Indian brands that is competing with international and global giants

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine given ...

, and

Puma Puma or PUMA may refer to: Animals * ''Puma'' (genus), a genus in the family Felidae ** Puma (species) or cougar, a large cat Businesses and organisations * Puma (brand), a multinational shoe and sportswear company * Puma Energy, a mid- and d ...

. The company was started by Nihal Chand Kharbanda, at Sialkot under the name Freewill Sports Pvt Ltd in 1934. Later his son Vijay Kharbanda joined the brand to manage further. "Nivia" is the combined name that is coined from the initial two letters of the first names of Nihal Chand Kharbanda the founder of Freewill, and his son Vijay Kharbanda. So "Ni" and "Vi" is joined together to create the brand name Nivia..

History

The founder's era

Freewill was established in 1934 at Sialkot, now in Pakistan, by Nihal Chand Kharbanda. After the partition of the Indian subcontinent into two separate countries of India and Pakistan, the company shifted its base from Sialkot to Mumbai, India. From Mumbai, it shifted to Meerut and finally settled down in Jalandhar, Punjab in 1950. He was a post-graduate in political science from Jalandhar, Punjab and joined the

National Institute of Sports Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports, commonly known as National Institute of Sports (NIS), is the Academic Wing of the Sports Authority of India (SAI) and Asia's largest Sports Institute located in city of Patiala. History Founded on 7 ...

in Patiala, Punjab to enhance his knowledge about sports equipment and worked according to the needs of Indian sports industries.

Vijay Kharbanda era

In 1962, Vijay Kharbanda the son of founder Nihal Chand Kharbanda joined the family business. He introduced the nozzles in football to the sports equipment manufacturing industry. The brand Nivia was registered in 1962 and the letters "VI" of the brand name were taken from his first name. The company launched a full range of hand-stitched leather balls for football, volleyball, and basketball games.

Rajesh Kharbanda era

In 1991, Rajesh Kharbanda, son of Vijay Kharbanda, joined the company. In 2005, Rajesh Kharbanda was appointed as the managing director. He put his experience and succeed to get certification for basketball from the International Basketball Federation. In 2015, Rajesh Kharbanda signed a partnership with

BRICS BRICS is an acronym for five leading emerging economies: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. The first four were initially grouped as "BRIC" (or "the BRICs") in 2001 by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill, who coined the ter ...

Football Cup, and Nivia has become the official ball partner of BRICS. The agreement was signed in the presence of H. E Tovar da Silva Nunes, the ambassador of Brazil in India. In 2021, His efforts to get approval from the FIBA and BFI were worthy and Nivia became the official ball partner af all matches played under Basketball Federation of India. The ball has been used by both junior-level and national-level competitions. In 2022, Rajesh Kharbanda along with

Abhishek Bachchan Abhishek Bachchan (born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and the grandson of poet Harivansh Rai Bach ...

, and Vita Dani the co-owner of

Chennaiyin FC Chennaiyin Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The club competes in the Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian football. The club was founded in August 2014 during the inaugural season o ...

had launched a kit for the 2022–23 season. This includes all three home, away, and third together. These were designed by the fans through a contest held during the year 2022. Rajesh Kharbanda successfully took the challenge of designing the special shoes for

para-badminton Para-badminton is a variant of badminton for athletes with a range of physical disabilities. Badminton World Federation (BWF) is the main governing body for para-badminton starting from June 2011. The sport was governed by Para Badminton World Fed ...

star

Nilesh Gaikwad Nilesh Balu Gaikwad (born 10 June 1996) is an Indian professional para-badminton player. He made his international debut in the Uganda Para-Badminton International in 2017, where he won first place in men's doubles for India. He reached a care ...

. These shoes were manufactured by keeping his legs parameters which increase the speed and the side body movement of Nilesh Gaikwad while playing. Mr. Kharbanda did not charge any cost for the specially designed shoes. The shoes have transformed Nilesh's sporting dream and career. Nilesh attributed the win of the bronze medal of the Spanish para-badminton international level 1 tournament to these Nivia shoes. Rajesh Kharbanda is also appointed as Chairperson by SGMEA, he projected a workforce to work remotely for stitching footballs. This would help workers who couldn't resume their jobs after the pandemic.

Products

Nivia Sports manufactures and markets sports products, sports wear, bags and accessories used for training and competition for sports including

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, volleyball, basketball,

handball Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

, running, fitness etc.

Football

Nivia Sports was the first Indian sports equipment manufacturer to produce hand stitched balls, including

footballs A football is a ball inflated with air that is used to play one of the various sports known as football. In these games, with some exceptions, goals or points are scored only when the ball enters one of two designated goal-scoring areas; football ...

. In the 1950s, under Freewill Sports Pvt Ltd, Nivia Sports started manufacturing hand-stitched leather footballs,

basketballs A basketball is a Sphere, spherical ball used in basketball games. Basketballs usually range in size from very small promotional items that are only a few inches (some centimeters) in diameter to extra large balls nearly in diameter used in trai ...

, and

volleyballs A volleyball is a ball used to play indoor volleyball, beach volleyball, or other less common variations of the sport. Volleyballs are round and traditionally consist of eighteen nearly rectangular panels of synthetic or genuine leather, arranged ...

. The company exported its balls to international markets, with its first consignment of 30 balls shipped to

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

. In the 1960s Nivia football received the approval of the National Itute of Sports, Patiala, Punjab, India. Its football became the official ball for the National Football Championship and for the

(AIFF). In the 1980s, Nivia was selected as the official ball for the International Football Tournament Jawaharlal Nehru Gold Cup and South Asian Federation (SAF) Games. Nivia Sports has also produced and sponsored other accessories related to football, such as

boots A boot is a type of footwear. Boot or Boots may also refer to: Businesses * Boot Inn, Chester, Cheshire, England * Boots (company), a high-street pharmacy chain and manufacturer of pharmaceuticals in the United Kingdom * The Boot, Cromer Stre ...

, uniforms,

goalkeeper glove In association football, kit (also referred to as a strip or uniform) is the standard equipment and attire worn by players. The sport's rules specify the minimum kit which a player must use, and also prohibit the use of anything that is dangerou ...

s, goal nets, training gear,

shin guard A shin guard or shin pad, is a piece of equipment worn on the front of an athlete's shin to protect it from injury. These are commonly used in sports including association football, baseball, ice hockey, field hockey, lacrosse, cricket and moun ...

s, ball pump.Bend it like Ronaldo
The Tribune of India, 19 June 2010 NIVIA Sports introduced Astra, the official match ball for Indian Super League 2021–2022. The soccer ball is made with PU micro-fiber leather, in 8-panel structure which technically reduces the seam length by 23%. Astra replaced Ashtang soccer ball in the new season.

Basketball

Nivia makes handmade balls. The basketball initially goes to a machine where a rubber blob is squeezed to flatten it to a thinner size, giving it a round shape. Then other stitching, and painting works are done manually by hand.

CNNMoney CNN Business (formerly CNN Money) is a financial news and information website, operated by CNN. The website was originally formed as a joint venture between CNN.com and Time Warner's ''Fortune'' and ''Money'' magazines. Since the spin-off of Time ...

showed the making of basketballs in Nivia's factory in

(

), India. NIvia Sports's basketball 'Top Gear 3.0' has received certification from

, the

. Nivia has become the official ball partner for the BFI, the

from 2021 until 2025. It has provided official match balls for all matches organised by the BFI and FIBA.

Volleyball

In 1963, the Nivia

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...

was selected to be used as the official ball in the Pre-Olympic Volleyball Championship organised in New Delhi, India.History
on Nivia website, 13 August 2020 VAYU is the latest volleyball from NIVIA, which is India's first 12-panel ball.

Cricket

Nivia Sports also manufactures cricket balls, and cricketing apparels.

Athletic shoes

During the 1980s, Nivia Sports started manufacturing sports footwear in India. Through the years, the company added footwear for use in other games such as

, football, basketball, volleyball, badminton, tennis, kabaddi,

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

, and

track & field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

. They also produced shoelaces and gel insoles.

Football boots

The series of shoes includes identical properties as per their categories. It involves, Aviator, Brasil, Crane, Dominator, Ditmar, Destroyer, England, Encounter, Pro Encounter, Germany, Invader, Oslar, Oslar blade, Premier, Premier Carbonite, Premier Cleats, Spain, Tough, and Ultra.

Apparels

Nivia sports has been appointed as the official apparel partner for BFI and FIBA Backed 3x3 Pro Basketball League.

Jersey

Nivia Sports manufactures jerseys for all sports. It has been the official sports partner for many of the sports clubs. Nivia Jerseys are made up of micro polyester and Nivia is the official partner for the largest clubs like

ATK Mohun Bagan FC ATK Mohun Bagan FC () is an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. The club competes in Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian football. The club, which was formed as a merger between the football section of m ...

and sports leagues as ISL,

BFI The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

Accessories

Nivia Sports produces sports accessories such as kits or bags, tracksuits, shorts, lowers, shocks, and windcheaters for use in cricket, football, basketball, and volleyball. The company has contributed sports equipment, footwear and accessories including badminton rackets and shuttlecocks, strings, skateboards, skating wheels, squash rackets, and swimming accessories like earplugs, fins, masks, and aqua boards.

Sponsorships

BasketBall

Futsal

Futsal Club Championship The Futsal Club Championship, also referred as Hero Futsal Club Championship for sponsorship ties, is the highest level futsal club competition in India, organised by the All India Football Federation (AIFF). The inaugural edition kicked off ...

Football

National Teams

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...

Federations and associations

Bhutan Football Federation The Bhutan Football Federation (Dzongkha: འབྲུག་རྐང་རིལ་ཚོགས་སྡེ།) is the governing body of football in Bhutan, controlling Bhutan national football team, Bhutan women's national football team and Bhu ...

(Official match ball sponsor)

Clubs Teams

ATK (Football Club) ATK (formerly Atlético de Kolkata) was an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. The club competed in the Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian football and were the league champions during the inaugural ...

(2015–19) *

Colombo FC Colombo Football Club, or Colombo FC, is a professional football club based in Colombo, that competes in the Sri Lanka Champions League, the top flight of Sri Lankan football. They are 3-time winners of the prestigious Dialog Champions League ...

(2018–present) *

DSK Shivajians FC DSK Shivajians Football Club (founded as Shivajians Sports Club) was an Indian professional association football, football club based in Pune, Maharashtra. The club was owned by the DSK Group, and competed in the I-League, then top tier of Indi ...

(2015–17) *

Shillong Lajong FC Shillong Lajong FC (founded as Lajong SC) is an Indian professional football club based in Shillong, Meghalaya, that competes in the Shillong Premier League. The club was established in 1983 with the prime objective of improving the declining ...

(2017–18) *

Jamshedpur FC Jamshedpur Football Club (, ) is an Indian professional football club based in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, that competes in the Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian Football. Founded in 2017, the club debuted in Indian Super League during t ...

(2017–present) *

ATK Mohun Bagan ATK Mohun Bagan FC () is an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. The club competes in Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian football. The club, which was formed as a merger between the football section of m ...

(2020–present) *

(2021–present) *

Chennai City FC Chennai City Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, that last competed in the I-League, then one of the top flights of Indian football league system, and Chennai Football League. Established in ...

(2019–present) *

TRAU FC Tiddim Road Athletic Union Football Club, or simply TRAU FC, is an Indian professional football club based in Imphal, Manipur, that competes in the I-League. The club made its I-League 2nd Division debut in the 2017–18 season. They promoted ...

(2019–20) *

Corbett FC Corbett FC (previously known as the Amenity Sports Academy and the Corbett Tigers) is an Indian professional football club based in Rudrapur, Uttarakhand. The club currently competes in Uttarakhand Super League and has participated in 2021 I-L ...

(2021–present) *

Churchill Brothers Churchill Brothers FC Goa, or simply known as Churchill Brothers, is an Indian professional football club based in Margao, Goa, that competes in the I-League, alongside Goa Professional League. Founded in 1988 in Margao, the club usually part ...

(2011–17; 2018–present) *

Sreenidi Deccan FC Sreenidi Deccan Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Hyderabad, Telangana. Established on 1 January 2015 as a football academy at Hyderabad and launched from Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh in 2021, the club currently c ...

(2016–present) *

NEROCA FC NEROCA FC is an Indian professional association football, football club based in Imphal, Manipur, that competes in the I-League. The club made its I-League 2nd Division debut in the 2015–16 I-League 2nd Division, 2015–16 season. The club w ...

(2021–present) *

Real Kashmir FC Real Kashmir FC is an Indian professional football club based in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, Club competes in both the I-League, and J&K Premier Football League. Nicknamed ''Snow Leopards'', it is the first ever club from Jammu and Kashmir th ...

(2022–present)

Domestic leagues

Indian Super League The Indian Super League (ISL) is an Indian professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the Indian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Organised by the All India Football Federat ...

(Official match ball and staff officials kit sponsor) (2018–present) *

I-League The I-League (known as Hero I-League for sponsorship ties with Hero MotoCorp) is the second-tier men's professional football competition of the Indian football league system. It is currently contested by 12 clubs across the country with the w ...

I-League 2nd Division I-League 2, previously known as I-League 2nd Division and officially known as or Hero I-League 2 (for sponsorship ties with Hero MotoCorp), is an Indian men's professional football league. It is the 3rd tier of Indian football, behind Indian ...

Durand Cup The Durand Football Tournament, commonly known as Durand Cup, is an annual domestic football competition in India which was first held in 1888 in Shimla. Hosted by the Durand Football Tournament Society (DFTS) and All India Football Federation ...

Nepal Super League The Nepal Super League is Nepal's first professional franchise based football league organised by ''Nepal Sports and Events Management'' (NSEM) in technical support with ANFA. A total of seven franchises participated in the first tournament w ...

(Official match ball sponsor) *

(Official match ball sponsor) * Kerala Women's League

References

{{Sports equipment brands Athletic shoe brands Companies based in Punjab, India Indian brands Manufacturing companies established in 1934 Sporting goods brands Sporting goods manufacturers of India Sportswear brands Indian companies established in 1934