Nivia Sports

Freewill Sports Pvt. Ltd., owner of the brand Nivia Sports, is an Indian sports equipment manufacturing company based in Jalandhar, Punjab, India.[4][5]

Nivia sports
TypePrivate
IndustrySports equipment, textile
Founded1934 (1934)
FounderNihal Chand Kharbanda
HeadquartersJalandhar, Punjab,
India
Area served
World Wide
Key people
Vijay Kharabanda
(Chairman & Managing Director, 1940–2017)
Rajesh Kharabanda
(Managing Director)[1]
ProductsBalls (football, basketball, volleyball), football boots, sportswear, accessories
Number of employees
2,000 [2]
ParentFreeWill Sports[3]
Websitewww.niviasports.com

The name "Nivia" was coined by the founder of the Freewill, by combining the initials of the first two letters of his name Nihal and his son's name Vijay- "Ni" and "Vi".[6]

History

Freewill was established in 1934 at Sialkot, now in Pakistan, by Nihal Chand Kharabanda. 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.[5]

In 1962, the son of founder Nihal Chand Kharabanda joined the family business. The brand Nivia was registered in 1962.[7]

The company launched a full range of hand stitched leather balls for the games of football, volleyball and basketball.[5]

In 1991, Rajesh Kharabanda, son of Vijay Kharabanda, joined the company. In 2005, Rajesh Kharabanda was appointed as the Managing Director.[8]The basketball made by Nivia also got certification from the International Basketball Federation.[9]

Products

Nivia Sports manufactures and markets sports products, sports wear, bags and accessories used for training and competition for sports including football, volleyball, basketball, handball, cricket, running, fitness etc.[10]

Football
Nivia Sports hand-stitched football from 1960s
Nivia Antrix (left), and Nivia Ashtang models

Nivia Sports was the first Indian sports equipment manufacturer to produce hand stitched balls, including footballs. In the 1950s, under Freewill Sports Pvt Ltd, Nivia Sports started manufacturing hand stitched leather footballs, basketballs, and volleyballs. The company exported its balls to international markets, with its first consignment of 30 balls shipped to Indonesia. In the 1960s the Nivia football received the approval of National Institute of Sports, Patiala, Punjab, India. Its football became the official ball for the National Football Championship and for the All India Football Federation (AIFF).[7] 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.[7]

Nivia Sports has also produced and sponsored other accessories related to football, such as boots, uniforms, goalkeeper gloves, goal nets, training gear, shin guards, ball pump.[11]

NIVIA Sports introduced Astra, the official match ball for Indian Super League 2021-2022.[12] The soccer ball is made with PU micro-fibre leather, in 8-panel structure which technically reduces the seam length by 23%. Astra replaced Ashtang soccer ball in the new season.

Basketball
Nivia basketball (above), and G20-20 volleyball

Nivia makes handmade balls. The basketball initially goes to a machine where a rubber blob squeezed to flatten it to a thinner size and giving it a round shape. Then other stitching, painting works are done by hands. CNNMoney showed the making of basketballs in Nivia's factory at Jalandhar (Punjab), India.[13]

Volleyball

In 1963, the Nivia volleyball was selected to be used as the official ball in the Pre-Olympic Volleyball Championship organised in New Delhi, India.[7]

Athletic shoes

During the 1980s, Nivia Sports started manufacturing sports footwear in India.[7] Through the years, the company added footwear for use in other games such as cricket, football, basketball, volleyball, badminton, tennis, kabaddi, wrestling, and track & field. They also produced shoelaces and gel insoles.[14]

Football boots
Nivia Oslar Blade, football boot

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.[15]

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.[16]

Sponsorships

BasketBall

Futsal

National Teams

Federations and associations

Clubs Teams

Domestic leagues

References
  1. "Key People of Nivia Sports".
  2. "Nivia Sports No of Employees". Nivia Sports.
  3. "About Nivia Sports".
  4. "Nivia Sports, FreeWill Sports Pvt Ltd". The Economic Times.
  5. "About Nivia Sports".
  6. Bhardwaj, Aakanksha N (20 June 2017). "Man who blazed a trail, gave sports industry a firm foothold". The Tribune. India. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  7. History on Nivia website, 13 Aug 2020
  8. "Key People in Nivia Sports".{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. Service, Tribune News. "Nivia's basketball gets FIBA certification". Tribuneindia News Service. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  10. "Nivia Sports Official Website | Step Out and play". www.niviasports.com. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
  11. Bend it like Ronaldo, The Tribune of India, 19 June 2010
  12. "Official Ball Partner NIVIA unveils match ball for Hero ISL 2021-22".
  13. "In the making of Nivia's Basketball".
  14. "Footwear for Games".
  15. "Football Shoes".
  16. "Nivia Accessories".
  17. Nivia Sports [@niviasports] (18 October 2021). "From School Leagues to National Championships #NIVIA basketballs are the Official balls for the @BFI_basketball #MoveUpWithNivia #StepOutAndPlay #NiviaSports #Indianbasketball t.co/AwWCS6cddH" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 28 October 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021 – via Twitter.
  18. Indian Football Team [@IndianFootball] (30 October 2021). "Presenting to you, the @niviasports Force Futsal, official match ball ⚽ of the Hero Futsal Club Championship 2021-22!!! 💙🏆💙🏆 #IndianFootball ⚽️ t.co/YmEjhRtusg" (Tweet). Retrieved 30 October 2021 – via Twitter.
  19. "Nivia joins hands with ISL as official match ball sponsor". khelnow.com. Khel Now. 18 August 2018. Archived from the original on 4 August 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
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