In a country where cricket is a religion, choosing football may sound blasphemous. But a bright story for the world's most popular sport has emerged over the last quinquennium.
With China coming up with its uber rich league, India is fast becoming the next biggest market. Consequently, Spain's La Liga set up its operational base in New Delhi, third in Asia, and has changed the kickoff times in order to satiate its Indian audiences with the launch now at 1 pm (4.30 pm IST).
Why the Fascination?
Youth in India are choosing football as their game as much as cricket was their fathers’. The young aren’t sold on cricket in the way their parents were and have started taking up the sport at the school level.
Manchester United tops the ranks in terms of popular patronage. The English club boast a figure of around 35 million Red Devils (fans) in the country.
Speaking about merchandise, Adidas puts the estimated size of the sportswear market in India at USD 370 million (Rs 2,300 crore) of which Adidas along with Reebok controls 75 percent. Thus making it the second most popular sport in the country.
More than 2000 Gunners' fans (Arsenal FC) thronged the launch of the new 2015-16 kits exclusively in Mumbai, corroborating such a claim.
How India Benefits
In 2015, Rajib Roy, a 16-year-old Kolkata boy, caught the eye of United scouts during a national tournament and was given a two-week trial at Old Trafford. The son of a scraggly sex worker has been dubbed 'The Indian Wayne Rooney'. This gives hope to children who have been red carded from the mainstream.
The Premier League also run schemes, including the Magic Bus project for street children in Mumbai. In 2007, Premier Skills, a sports and education project was launched in Delhi in association with the British Council.
Football tourism too has created a globalised ecosystem for these institutions to integrate diverse people from all coordinates of the world.
Adopting the Professional Culture of Football
India's rapidly expanding middle class represents a huge commercial resource exemplified by the success of cricket's Indian Premier League.
Be it the gumption of Rooney or street genius of Messi – from Twitter to Facebook – an Indian fan follows the action enraptured, on and off the field. Football giants have responded to this hunger for the sport with academies like Paris Saint-Germain Academy, Barcelona's FCBEscola and Arsenal Soccer Schools springing up.
Peter Kenyon, CEO of Chelsea FC, pointed to game expertise and star players as the major benefits that European clubs offer to Indian football. La Liga president Javier Tebas has also asserted the want to share knowledge with India's young people.
The Changing Football Landscape
Ten Network, Star Sports, Sony Network etc are all providing viewing pleasure to the football fanatics of the country. Football's success in India can be compared to that in China in the early 90s, with television being the decisive factor.
In a developing country nearing the size of Europe, the cost of setting up a sustainable domestic strategy has proved to be a barrier. Since its inception in 1996, the 20-year journey of the National League has been disappointing.
Hence, the restructured Indian football setup will have three tiers in its pyramid from 2017-18 season with the lowest block as 'League Two', the second tier as 'League One' and the top tier of Indian football will de facto be the ISL.
The Road Ahead
In the end, it's success that breeds popularity and the national team has shown little to flatter the ordinary fan. India needs on-field success much like the 1983 Cricket World Cup for football to thrive.
The recent run of Bangalore FC to the finals of the AFC cup and climbing to 100th spot in International rankings have suffused much needed impetus before the Fifa -17 World Cup this October. This will be the first FIFA tournament that India has ever hosted. With a possible bid for FIFA U-20 World Cup in the offing, a tournament that has given the Messis and Pogbas of this world, India might well be on course for a tryst with its footballing destiny.
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