DELHI, INDIA: The Indian football community have been shocked by the All India Football Federation’s (AIFF) decision to withdraw from the inaugural FIFA ASEAN Cup in favour of a one-off friendly against Brazil in Kolkata on October 3.
The driving force behind this decision is understood to be Kalyan Chaubey, the president of the AIFF, who is also a politician from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which holds power at the centre.
It has been reported that Mr Chaubey, who is due for re-election later this year, intends to use the friendly against Brazil as a major plank in his campaign. While the costs of hosting the five-time world champions are unparalleled, it also does major damage to the long-term vision of Indian football.
In what would be the inaugural ASEAN Cup, India were invited by FIFA and drawn alongside Malaysia, Singapore and hosts Indonesia. However, the fixtures of the ASEAN Cup clashed with the friendly against Brazil. After much deliberation, the AIFF chose to forego the prestigious tournament and play against Brazil instead.
The friendly with Brazil is expected to help Kalyan Chaubey’s re-election campaign
Hosting Brazil is expected to cost the AIFF at least INR 60-70 crore, and how the federation chose to spend it on a one-off exhibition game instead of investing in grassroots or towards building a secure future is baffling, to say the least. India may also incur financial penalties from FIFA for skipping the ASEAN Cup.
The one-off clash with Brazil is expected to be financially lucrative for the AIFF, and also help Mr Chaubey in his re-election campaign. Nonetheless, choosing to forego the ASEAN Cup at a time when Indian football has sunk to the 138th position in the FIFA rankings is abominable.
Since the ASEAN Cup is an official FIFA-recognised tournament, positive results would have helped India improve their rankings while giving much-needed game time to their youngsters, who have been waiting on the wings for far too long.
The Brazil friendly’s primary premise is to amuse the football-mad supporters of Kolkata, instead of giving a shot in the arm to Indian football. How Mr Chaubey sleeps after planning to spend this much on an exhibition game in a country where one-third of children under the age of five suffer from malnutrition is beyond comprehension.
Jamshedpur FC and Aizawl FC’s decisions lie at the tip of the iceberg in Indian football
Mr Chaubey’s decision has long-ranging repercussions. It is now clear that the AIFF is indifferent to improving India’s standings in the global order, and exists solely to fill its coffers and prejudice, hold and subsume political power.
While the friendly with the Selecao may help Mr Chaubey get re-elected, it will cause major damage to the Indian football ecosystem, where players, supporters and stakeholders have been indirectly ensured of a dark and gloomy future.
Jamshedpur FC’s decision to pull out of the Indian Super League, and Aizawl FC’s call to transfer their license to another club are merely the tips of a dangerous-looking iceberg. Dark lies the night for Indian football supporters when the grassroots get abandoned for personal and political gain.
The AIFF’s immaturity is solely responsible for the Blue Tigers’ shallow international record. The Indian national team shall continue to remain the butt of all jokes, with the dream of making it to the FIFA World Cup remaining just that: a dream.
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