Maha-League: Only the beginning of change in Indian football

Indian football is waiting to see a football extravaganza, called Maha-League, which is the brainchild of IMG- Reliance, the marketing partner of the apex body of football in India. The two-month IPL-style football league will provide an opportunity to the Indian players to play with some of the prominent names in world football, which will surely motivate the young footballers of the country to improve their game. This league will also provide an opportunity to the millions of football fans of the country to witness the prowess of few of the world’s renowned footballers. The glamour and star-value of the league will attract the corporates towards the game which, so far, is absent in Indian football. In brief, we may say that this league, if it takes place, will help us in creating hype around Indian football, which is a rare phenomenon. But the question is, can we sustain this hype for the long term interest of the game in India?

In India, the most prestigious football event is the I-League which was started in the year 2007 with an objective of professionalizing the football structure of the country. Prior to that, this league was known as the National Football League which was introduced in 1996. The objective of the I-League, previously known as the National Football League, is to make a strong national team which can establish India on the football map of the world. However, we have failed to achieve this objective. We are still languishing in 147^th position in the world ranking. Why we are not improving? The first reason is that we do not run the associations and clubs professionally. Almost all the associations and clubs are run by amateurs who either do not have the mindset or do not have the time to ensure the financial sustainability of these clubs and associations. Because of the amateurism, these organizations often find it difficult to arrange their financial resources, which is an obstacle in setting up infrastructure, establishing supply line of players, undertaking fan developmental and community developmental initiatives or taking a comprehensive media initiative. The solution is to make these associations commercial entities by making them registered under the Companies Act 1956, except Clause 25, as Clause 25 still allows an organization to survive without making profit. A commercial structure should be adopted which will allow the professional managers to run these organizations with proper accountability.

The second need is to prepare a Long Term Development Plan (LTDP) for the growth of Indian football. This plan should cover various aspects, such as infrastructure developmental activities, grass-root developmental activities, scholarship schemes for the talented players, marketing initiatives etc. LTDP should also indicate the sustainability model suggested for each and every aspect. For example, a planning for the infrastructure should cover both the setting up of the infrastructure as well as its sustainability. The naming rights, hospitality packages and special areas of the stadiums and arenas can be sold to the corporate for making them commercially viable. The LTDP should also focus in providing a career direction to the youth of India who want to take up football as a career option. There should be a proper combination of sports and education which will help them in building a career even after the completion of their playing career.

The third aspect is to concentrate on improving the performance of the national teams. The national teams of all categories of our country hardly get any chance to participate in reputed tournaments or matches. They hardly get opportunities to practice together, which is the key to success as a team. This is happening as there is no plan with the national teams. It’s high time that the major stakeholders think on this issue and prepare a comprehensive plan to make a strong national team in each category, as the national teams are responsible in improving the ranking and establishing the country on the global football map.

From the discussion, it is obvious that the proposed IPL-style League may create hype, but it will be short lived if proper steps will not be taken for the overall promotion of Indian football. It’s a pity that in the last edition of I- League, matches were played in the afternoon, under the scorching heat. The weather was unfavourable for the players and uncomfortable for the fans. The matches were played during the weekdays in empty stadia. A two-month Maha-League can create a new beginning, but this will only make a radical change if a change in the entire system will be introduced. Let us wait for that structural change!

The author is an Assistant Professor at the Naval Tata Centre of Excellence in Sports Management, IISWBM, Kolkata