AIFF's bid for the FIFA U-17 WC raises more questions than it answers

The news last week that the central government had pledged its support for the All India Football Federation’s bid to host the FIFA u-17 World Cup in 2017 featuring 24 teams evoked a muted reaction from the Indian football community. The only reaction that this writer read emanated from Football House in New Delhi and it featured the AIFF football chief Praful Patel claiming that this is “an extremely positive development for Indian football” while expressing confidence that India would win the bid in the face of stiff competition from “strong contenders”.

According to a sports ministry press release, the Union Cabinet has sanctioned an expenditure of 95 crore for the upgradation of stadia as additional central assistance to the state governments (presumably Delhi, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa and Kerala which will host the matches), and kept 25 crore as a contingency for the smooth conduct of the tournament. “AIFF and FIFA have agreed to bear the entire expenditure of hosting the tournament. The amounts required are to be raised through sponsorships and other commercial agreements,” the press release said.

FIFA’s executive committee will decide on the destination of u-17 WC 2017 later this year.

At the risk of appearing to flash a red card for an imaginary foul or for one that is yet to be committed, allow me to raise some pertinent questions:

* What happens if the actual expenditure for upgradation of stadia and other expenses overshoots the budgeted figure and also the contingency amount? Who will foot the bill – the AIFF, FIFA, state governments, Centre?

* How much will the concerned state governments be contributing to the AIFF-FIFA party and what will be the total cost to the Indian public (expenditure of central + state governments)?

* Are other costs like security, infrastructural arrangements and improvements around the stadia, public transportation etc., to be borne by the state governments and/or are they covered by this contingency amount?

* What is the total budget estimate that the AIFF-FIFA have provided to the Centre as to the cost of staging the tournament in India?

* What are the demands of FIFA in terms of tax rebates, incentives etc., for itself and for its commercial partners?

* Are there any “specific assurances” that the central government has given that have taken care of the reasons which made FIFA reject the government’s earlier proposal in January?

I am raising these queries in the light of the experience of various countries which have staged mega events like the Olympics (both summer and winter), Commonwealth Games, World Cups etc., and the massive cost escalations (exceeding a few thousand per cent) from the original budgets and the massive corruption by local and international sports officials that accompanied them.

As a rather pompous anchor on a English news television channel would say, “The nation demands answers – now!”

Mass protests have already broken out in Brazil at the various venues hosting the Confederations Cup as a precursor to the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Demonstrators are protesting the vast sums of money that will be spent on hosting the mega event and they have been met by an excessive use of force by the authorities. The World Cup is expected to cost Brazil, a developing country, a few billion dollars (the renovation of 12 stadiums itself has reportedly crossed the $3 billion mark) while FIFA will be laughing all the way to the bank as they did at South Africa 2010. Already, the price of public transport has been hiked as the costs of the football carnival 2014 are being slowly passed on to the ‘aam aadmi’ (the common man).

Although public memory is generally short, the Commonwealth Games 2010 is an experience that the people of this country will hopefully never forget. The various aspects relating to the bidding, organization, expenditures and other issues involved with CWG2010, including the infringement of human rights, have been highlighted in an excellent study entitled “The 2010 Commonwealth Games –Whose Wealth, Whose Commons?” brought out by the Housing & Land Rights Network which can be perused on the internet.

Allow me to regurgitate a few facts that some people may have forgotten:

* The Indian Olympic Association under the presidency of the ‘tainted’ Suresh Kalmadi successfully bid for CWG 2010 in 2003 with the full backing of the then ruling National Democratic Alliance government, the decision being endorsed by the United Progressive Alliance government that replaced it at the centre. The IOA projected an initial total budget of Rs. 1,620-1,899 cr. It underwent several upward revisions and finally the actual budget zoomed over Rs. 10,000 crore, not including non-sports related infrastructure development. All in all, CWG2010 may have cost the Indian exchequer at least 30,000 cr by conservative estimates.

* The bid document submitted by the IOA grandly observed that “it is expected that on completion, the Games are going to generate surplus”. Everybody knows that quite the opposite happened. According to one figure bandied about by the CWG organizing committee, the Games were expected to generate revenues of 1,780 cr from sponsorships, sale of telecast rights, ticketing, licensing etc. It is not known whether these revenues accrued, though that appears extremely doubtful.

* The last minute ‘winning goal’ that won the IOA the CWG bid was the offer of $100,000 to each member association of the Commonwealth family during the bidding process for the training of athletes (total cost $7.2 million or Rs. 32.4 crore). Other goodies that were doled out to clinch the bid included an offer of a travel grant of $10.5 million (Rs. 0.48 crore) for an estimated number of 5,200 athletes and 1,800 officials, luxury accommodation for the “CGF family” in New Delhi, chauffeur driven luxury cars for the duration of the Games and a free trip to the Taj Mahal.

In the light of the past experience with CWG2010, one wonders what will be the vote clincher for the AIFF. What sort of goodies will the AIFF have to dole out to the FIFA ex-com members, whose reputation for probity has taken a severe mauling in the past, for the debatable honour of staging a nominal event that only the AIFF top brass seems to be excessively interested in? And who stand to gain from the u-17 World Cup?

Tourism, as the government has said, probably quoting from the AIFF document? Or Indian football? Quite debatable. But assorted officials, marketing agents, private sector companies etc., could be licking their lips in anticipation of a killing, though the FIFA u-17 World Cup is loose change compared to the bonanza generated by the CWG.

This is a game that must be closely watched by one and all, should it come to be played.