A little more than 500 days separate India from cementing a place in the FIFA history books. The country is set to become the fourth Asian nation to host the U-17 FIFA World Cup, following the footsteps of China, Korea Republic and UAE. India last came this close to being a part of a FIFA event was back in 1950, but as history has it the federation decided to opt out of the tournament.
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67 years later, India do get a chance to redeem themselves with the burden, this time being carried on the shoulders of the country’s ‘most important teenagers’.
But unlike the 16 previous U-17 World Cup’s starting from 1985 in China to 2015 in Chile, there is a different air surrounding the event being held in the country from the subcontinent. As Local Organising Committee (LOC) head Javier Ceppi puts it, “India is ready to host an event of such high magnitude.”
With a population of 1.26 billion people, India are set to host what could be labelled as the biggest youth World Cup in FIFA history. The country will overtake China who back in 1985 had a population of 1.05 billion. Surprisingly, India will surpass the total population figure for all countries combined since 1987-2015.
Year | Host Country | Population (in that year) |
1985 | China
| 1.051 Billion |
1987
| Canada | 26.55 Million |
1989 | Scotland | 5 Million |
1991 | Italy | 56.76 Million |
1993 | Japan | 124.5 Million |
1995 | Ecuador | 11.32 Million |
1997 | Egypt | 63.09 Million |
1999 | New Zealand | 3.83 Million |
2001 | Trinidad & Tobago | 1.27 Million |
2003 | Finland | 5.21 Million |
2005 | Peru | 27.72 Million |
2007 | Korea Republic | 48.6 Million |
2009 | Nigeria | 155.4 Million |
2011 | Mexico | 119.4 Million |
2013 | UAE | 9.34 Million |
2015 | Chile | 18.1 Million |
| 2017 | India | 1.26 Billion |
But with the country still growing its affinity towards the global sport, the glaring question in everybody’s mind remains that whether the country will be able to attract audience in large numbers at the stadiums.
The World Cup in Chile had an average attendance of more than 9000, whereas Mexico saw fans turn out in large numbers as well. In India though the evidence does not suggest that it is going to be an easy ride for the organising committee. Empty stands have often been the defining image of the I-League.
Speaking exclusively to Sportskseeda, tournament director Ceppi who was also part of the previous two editions of the youth World Cup has urged the Indian fans to make the most of the opportunity FIFA has provided them with.
“One has to be mindful that when we are talking that 47% of the population of India considers itself a football fan, that means almost 600 million people, which is the largest base of football fans in the world except maybe for China.
“There are plenty of football fans in India and it would be a huge treat for them to go to the stadiums, because what they will watch is the best football they have watched in their home soil till date, much better than any amateur or professional football leagues that have been played so far in India.”
“A true football fan will understand that and it would not be good for him/her to miss out on this once in a lifetime opportunity to watch the best footballers in the world in their age group competing to win a World Cup, which is the most precious objective for every single athlete.
“We are sure that the almost 600 million football fans that are in India understand the importance of this Tournament and what there is at stake for the future of football in India: if we excel in many areas, among them attendance, we would be in the running to host further international football tournaments. We have one chance to make this right and we expect all football fans behind us in this movement.”
“Usually, when a country is hosting a Tournament of such a stature, the main objective is to have full stadiums. It was true for Chile 2015, as it was for Mexico 2011. In the case of India, to have full stadiums is not the end goal, it is a consequence of a much larger objective, which is to initiate the wave that will change football forever in India and, by extension, the rest of the World,” he said.
“If that is achieved, having full stadiums will come as a consequence and we can say that our target in terms of attendance will be met. If we manage to initiate the wave of change for football in India, then we would be in a position to have over 2.2 million spectators total in the stadiums (45K average), which would make it the most attended FIFA Youth World Cup and the most attended international sporting event to be hosted to date in India,” the Chilean further added.
Arup Soans the marketing head of the LOC, FIFA U-17 World Cup adds that the organising committee has prepared a strategy to market the entire event in the right manner, so as to increase fan engagement.
“The LOC plans to engage with schools across the nation with the support of the State and Central Government starting June 2016. Driving awareness about the tournament is the first phase which will lead in to ensuring football is played as the sport of choice during school hours as well. 2017 will see a host of activities across the states with football festivals and other FIFA events like the official draw and trophy tour,” he told Sportskeeda.
The tournament has given rise to superstars such as Neymar, Toni Kroos, Cesc Fabregas and many others and to the delight of the billions in India, this could be an opportunity for them to see the rise of another prime footballing hero.
