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| a happy man |
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) president, Praful Patel hailed the success of the inaugural edition of the Indian Super League (ISL) and highlighted the fact of several fans thronging to the stadiums to watch the action.
“We started ISL – Indian Super League, thanks to our association with IMG and Reliance especially after Nita Ambani took personal interest in that. It took over three years. We didn't have infrastructure and we had so many issues to be resolved. Finally we see the Indian Super League which is a great success. The average attendance in the stadium is 23,000 vs. 29,000 for the IPL,” he told DNA.
Patel questioned the critics who had their reservations of bringing international stars to India as to how would they get an average football fan to follow domestic action.
“The TRP of (ISL) football is almost 50 per cent of IPL. It's very early - only four to five weeks old. The next five weeks is going to be the real excitement. Now the buildup is starting. People feel why should the international footballers come? How else do you attract people to the game? Our kids watch international tournaments.
“Indian players are also getting the rub-off effect the benefit of playing with international players. Over the period of time, we'll create our own icons. As the national team starts doing better, then they'll get recognition and whole country will start following them,” he explained.
He acknowledged that India has a long way to go before it can compete with some of the best nations in the continent, let alone world. He reiterated his passion to develop Indian football.
“We were champions in the 50s. It's ironical that the only time India got an entry into the World Cup was 1950 where we withdrew the team because we wanted to play without shoes. I acknowledge that Indian football has a long way to go but I'm trying my best in every way and I have a lot of passion for it.
“The world football fraternity, especially FIFA has acknowledged the fundamental changes happening in India. The results will be seen in the next three to five years,” he promised.
Patel also gave his reasons for choosing to become president of Western India Football Federation (WIFA) which governs the footballing activities in the state of Maharashtra.
“Cricket is a great sport but limited to a handful of countries. I have very fond memories of football and hockey. Whenever I got a chance to do anything, I'd rather go to any of these two. I felt football is truly the most global sport – not even hockey or cricket. As a result, I became the president of Maharashtra Football Association,” he said.
The 57-year old politician mentioned that while the standard of football in India needs to improve, it wouldn’t transform itself with a magic wand. Instead, we have to cultivate a new generation of players who are technically and physically proficient to play against the best.
“We need to crack the whip and change the entire game. It's a tough job. Most people criticise without realising how difficult it is. Rankings are low but they can't be corrected overnight. It's not just you bring two good coaches or physical instructors to change. You have to create a new generation of footballers from childhood.
“In India, our footballer would probably not last the entire game like an average footballer from better playing nations. That's why we have to develop our kids from the grassroots,” he opined.
He highlighted the fact that the AIFF are running regional academies in order to develop and nurture talent so that they are ready when India hosts and participates in the Under-17 World Cup in 2017.
“We have six regional academies which are building up these talents which we have scouted from remote corners of the country. We have 150 kids with us now – we'll take them through the years through education, food and lodging. The main thing is to focus on their football. They are kids, they have to be trained and educated too.
“That's why we pitched for the World Cup under-17. After that, we'll go to World Cup under-20 so same kids will transition. By the time they are 23-24, we'll think of entering the World Cup. That is the thought,” he shared his vision.
