Indian Football: Behold the Royals from Wahingdoh

In an age where sports like football struggle to find space to develop in India due to lack of funding and investor interest, there is a lot to be learned from the relatively unknown club from Shillong named the Royal Wahingdoh FC for Indian football clubs and fans. A club that professes its love for the game with a very professional way to club management, the Royals from the land of the icy mountains are grabbing the eye balls of the nation right now.

Recently crowned the Champions of Divison 2 I-League qualifying round which were held in the Tamil Nadu, the Royal Wahingdoh FC, possessing some of the best talents in the country, are the next big hope for Shillong. With former Indian international Carlton Chapman running affairs at the helm as the team Director and led by captain James Singh, the Royals comprise top talents with several national capped players like Ashish Chetri, Bijendra Roy, John Shathap, Mala, the season’s top scorer Sathyasen Singh, Sathyasen Singh, Jackychan Singh, Algan and Saina.

The best part about the club is its professional attitude to managing players. In an era where football in India fails to thrive due to lack of infrastructure and poor pay packages for players, Royal Wahingdog FC is one club which bucks the trend by providing it’s players with outstanding facilities like luxurious hostels, gyms, recreation centres and a proper dietician to handle things on the health front. While such amazing facilities leave one wonder at how a newly formed club can afford its players in an age where even I-league players can only dream of such facilities, it is amazing how much care the club takes in keeping its players happy.

This unknown club based in the hill tops of Shillong has achieved wonders through professional marketing. The club’s expenditure last year was a whopping Rs.1 Crore. Such large investment and the high pays of Rs. 25000 to Rs. 35000 monthly given to young players with absolutely no experience in professional football has captured the attention of sponsors. Though the initial sponsors were relatively unknown, the diligent marketing by the club has inspired biggies like Seagrams and Budweiser. Next season onwards, the club’s maroon jersey will carry the name of German based financing house Union Corporation Ltd.

The Royals also have an U-19 and an U-15 squad, thus possessing the perfect foundation to build youth through their ranks. Last season, the Royals won the clinched the Shillong Premier Division and reached the finals of the Jamshedpur Steel Express Trophy and Navgav Independence Cup. This string of good performances led to them going all the way to Division 2 I-League where they clocked 6 wins out of 6 matches to qualify for the final round.

With 6000 registered fan bases from Shillong alone, Royal Wahingdog FC is a club that is well on its way to attaining greatness. Full credit must go the Royals’ owner, a warehousing businessman, a Chelsea fan who dreams of his club standing tall amongst the best in Asia by winning the I League Title and the AFC Cup. Being the Roman Abromovich of the North East, he has every right to dream so.

Edited by Zico