The Indian Super League (ISL) second edition concluded with Chennaiyin FC lifting the title, after narrowly missing out last year. From the finest foreign players to celebrities, the league highlighted football’s aesthetic and commercial growth within the Indian peninsula.
However, the success is yet to transition to the national team’s performances, who are enduring a dismal World Cup qualifying campaign. They are currently ranked 166th amongst 210 FIFA nations.
An official within FIFA’s hierarchy has given some insight into the administrative side of Indian football.
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A senior FIFA official said, “We have identified a tremendous growth pattern of following in India. However, it has failed to reach the grass-root level. We definitely see India as a potential powerhouse in the sport. We haven’t received enough support from football’s governing body there. We have setup a national centre in Delhi with two working officials, but the governing body is not reactive. For football to grow they have to come up with a plan, so that we can channelise funds and they can execute.”
Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda, he went onto state why countries with lesser facilities have fared better than India at the international level. He added, “If you look at African countries such as Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, the goal programme has successfully worked, because they had helped us build an ecosystem. We funded everything, but the implementation was done by the association. In India’s case, things are not as fast-paced. If implementation is executed in a timely manner, the country will grow leaps and bounds within the sport.”
India are currently languishing at the bottom of group D, registering just three points from six matches in the process. The official added, “We have now received several suggestions from selected fans in India are looking to implement those in the near future.”
FIFA to introduce ‘fan vote’ within internal matters soon
When asked about FIFA’s rehabilitation from the recent corruption arrests, he spoke about several programmes that were going to be introduced. He said, “After receiving a lot of feedback from fan representatives from across the world, we are planning to introduce the 211th member vote as a fan vote. This will help us exchange feedback regarding their expectations from us as well. We have also looked into several other aspects, and are preparing potential feasibility plans around it.”
FIFA’s goal programmes has acted as a boon for several countries, its implementation in India could boost grassroot level development.
