India is much like a dormant volcano when it comes to Sports. It erupts with every mega sporting event and then returns to being dormant. This time around the event is the FIFA U-17 World Cup and the sport is Football.
But for the first time in a long time, things seem to be gaining ground. And it’s about time. What should have happened 10 years ago is slowly picking pace now. What the Football Federation has been sitting (or rather sleeping) on for years has finally sprung them into action. Football initiatives and talent hunts are now underway – The most prominent one being the Mission XI Million, an outreach program that encourages children to play the ‘beautiful sport’ of football. It scouts the entire country for our footballing potential.
Why now? Well, it’s simple. The new government and people at the helm of things finally see daylight for football in the country. They finally see potential. They finally see money. They finally see crowds of young kids waiting in line to play football. And the line has only been getting longer and longer over the years. Yes, we’ve had the one odd likes of Bhaichung Bhutia and Sunil Chhetri who have stood in the limelight for all the right reasons. They have made it through the ranks despite all the adversities of football in India. But there ‘were and are’ many like them, who have contributed to the development of the sport when no one was looking. Their sacrifices and struggles went unnoticed – because we as people prefer to stay ignorant about the pitfalls of Sports in India – not realizing that our kids and the next generation need a country that they can play in. Not many realize that much of our young budding talent – even in the current U-17 World Cup team – come from impoverished and poor backgrounds.
Most would argue that there was never any money in sports before. But a sport is what you make of it. Football has always been one of the most lucrative sports in the world. And India has abundant talent hidden in hilly and other areas – fluent in football. We just weren’t forthcoming enough to see and capitalize on it. We were simply being what we are when it comes to sports in the country – complacent with cricket.
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Needless to say, this has been the unfortunate trend for all Sports in India other than cricket. We hope that the standing All India Football Federation (AIFF) can learn from its mistakes and find the foresight to high jump the sport forward. As mentioned, we are already a decade behind when it comes to football (and other sports) in India. And irrespective of the corresponding results, let’s give our U-17 World Cup team a fighting chance. And hail them for staying true to the sport.
– Varun Kumar | SpreadSports
