Why is #IndianFootballForAsianGames trending on Twitter?

The Indian football fraternity has seen a massive uproar since the revelation that the national team is unlikely to participate in the upcoming 2023 Asian Games, which will be held in Hangzhou, China, later in the year.

If carried out, this will be the second consecutive time the Blue Tigers will give the continental competition a miss. The IOA had refused to grant permission to the Indian team for the 2018 Asian Games as well.

Reason for snubbing the Indian football team from participating in the Asian Games

In a letter sent to Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and all the National Sports Federations (NSFs), the Sports Ministry had said that “for team events, only those sports which have achieved a ranking up to eighth among participating countries of Asia in the last one year should be considered for participation in Asian Games”.

The Blue Tigers are currently ranked 18th in the Asian Football Confederation and are being denied the opportunity to participate in the tournament on those grounds. The snub in 2018 was also under the same criteria.

Fans react with #IndianFootballForAsianGames on social media

The news of the possibility of both the men's and women's teams sitting out of the Asian Games and missing out on the opportunity to rub shoulders with the continent's finest hasn't been received well by the Indian supporters. The argument from the fans' perspective has been that if India is eligible they should partake in the competition.

Furthermore, exceptions have been given to the handball, volleyball, and basketball teams, all of whom fall outside the required Top 8 ranking. The Ministry and Anurag Thakur, the current Minister of Sports, have been requested by fans on social media to allow the Indian football team to participate in the competition using #IndianFootballForAsianGames.

Indian head coach Igor Stimac's appeal to PM Narendra Modi

Earlier on Monday, July 17, Indian head coach Igor Stimac came out with a statement on his social media accounts, appealing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow the national team to participate in Asian Games 2023.

"I wanted to bring to your immediate attention that our U-17 team from 2017, which also gave a great performance at the U-23 World Cup qualifiers and is one very talented team, is now being deprived from participating in the Asian games. This team really needs and deserves the participation," Igor Stimac elaborated in his statement.

He further argued:

"The reasons given are unjust and as India's national team coach, I felt it's important to immediately bring this matter to your and the Hon'ble Sports Minister Anurag Thakur's knowledge. So that you could intervene and help the team participate in the Asian Games."

Despite the uproar from the fans and the appeal from the coach, there has been no response from the Sports Ministry or any of the concerned stakeholders. However, the supporters can only hope that if they continue to push their argument using the hashtag, Anurag Thakur and the Ministry of Sports will revise their criteria or make an exception for the Indian football team.