• Supported by the Forward Thinking Mentoring Programme, Teckchandani’s innovative platform empowers players to showcase skill highlights and access opportunities, eliminating agent and travel costs.

United Arab Emirates: Seventeen-year-old UAE student Nirmay Teckchandani, who participates in the Forward Thinking Mentoring Programme, has launched Kick Connect, an innovative football-focused mobile application designed to help aspiring young players showcase their skills and connect directly with coaches and scouts worldwide.

Inspired by his own experience as an athlete and seeing how talented players often struggle to gain visibility, Teckchandani developed Kick Connect to bridge the gap between players and scouts. The innovative platform empowers users to upload skill highlight reels, participate in football-specific challenges, and spotlight UAE talent to international coaches and scouts, making talent discovery faster and more efficient.

Kick Connect functions as a social media platform tailored specifically to football. Players share performance clips and achievements, while coaches and scouts can identify talent through quick-view reels, challenge scores, and targeted search tools. The football platform eliminates the financial stress of expensive agents and travel costs, creating real-world opportunities for athletes and strengthening their profiles within the global football community.

Nirmay Teckchandani, Founder of Kick Connect, said: “As a young athlete myself, I have experienced first-hand how difficult it can be for talented players to get noticed without the right connections. Kick Connect was built to create direct access between players and coaches, making visibility more accessible and affordable.”

Over a period of five to six months, Teckchandani was involved in every stage of development, from interface design and testing functionality to gathering feedback from peers and local players. Balancing school responsibilities with product development presented its own challenges, particularly during examination periods. However, with mentorship support, Teckchandani was able to refine the app from concept into a fully functional platform.

The young entrepreneur aims to further enhance Kick Connect’s functionality and grow its user base, with the long-term vision of creating a dynamic platform that supports youth football communities and collaboration across schools and local leagues. Seeing his idea evolve into a tangible solution with meaningful impact has been the most rewarding part of his entrepreneurial journey. His advice to his aspiring peers is – “Start with real challenges, seek mentorship, and take action even before everything feels perfect.”

Teckchamdani’s journey was supported through his participation in the Forward Thinking Mentoring Programme - under the umbrella of Arcadia Education. The programme provides personalised mentorship and university counselling designed to support students academically, personally, and entrepreneurially. Through structured one-to-one guidance with experienced educators, former university admissions officers, and senior business leaders, the programme equips students with the clarity, confidence, and leadership skills required to pursue ambitious goals. Its holistic model blends academic support with entrepreneurial mentoring and wellbeing guidance, preparing students for success beyond the classroom.

Navin Valrani, CEO of Arcadia Education said: “The programme is designed to help students think beyond the classroom and apply their learning to real-world challenges. Nirmay identified a practical gap in youth sports visibility and developed a solution with tangible potential.”

Kick Connect is now live, with further feature enhancements planned as the platform expands its user base.

For more information on the Forward Thinking Mentoring Programme and its offerings, please visit www.forwardthinking.ae

About Forward Thinking Mentoring Programme

Forward Thinking Mentoring Programme, part of Arcadia Education, is a premium mentoring and counselling organisation dedicated to guiding students through their academic and personal growth journeys. Founded by Dr. Navin Valrani, CEO of Arcadia Education, the programme offers personalised mentorship and university guidance for students aged 12 years and older, combining academic support with personal development, wellbeing, and future readiness.

The Forward Thinking Mentoring Programme consists of experienced educators and former university admissions officers, united by a shared purpose to support every student find the confidence and direction required to secure prestigious university placements. The programme offers one-to-one mentor guidance, university counselling and guidance, including career mentoring, wellbeing support, and parental support. Designed as a premium, holistic service, it bridges the gap between academic tutoring and real-world mentorship, preparing students for life beyond school.

The programme has a notable track record of success, with 100% of participating students feeling emotionally supported, confident, and admitted to at least one of their top-choice universities. The programme empowers students through innovative application processes, offering tailored support based on each student’s individual needs, including essay writing, application strategies, and extracurricular alignment. This has resulted in students securing organic placements to prestigious universities across the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada such as University of Pennsylvania, Brown University, McGill University, University of Toronto, Cambridge University and University of St Andrews to name a few.

For further information, please visit: www.forwardthinking.ae

For all media inquiries contact:
Justin Froes at Q Communications
justin.f@qcomms.ae