SPIA Asia 2018: I-League adjudged runners-up in 'developing football league' by AFC
India's premier domestic club football league adds another feather to its cap...
The All India Football Federation's (AIFF) flagship domestic club league, the I-League has been awarded the silver rank in 'Best Developing Football League of the Year' category by AFC (Asian Football Confederation)' at the 2018 SPIA (Sports Industry Awards) Asia awards night in Bangkok on Tuesday.
The I-League narrowly missed out on the top spot as Vietnam's V.League 1 bagged gold. Indonesia's Go-Jek Liga 1 won bronze.
The screen on the stage displayed 'Indian Super League' instead of I-League as the representatives from India, a mistake on the part of the organisers.
Praising the achievment, AIFF president Praful Patel said, "I need to thank the Asian Football Confederation for nominating us and SPIA Awards for the recognition. My heartiest congratulations to all the stakeholders, especially the Clubs who have been an integral part of the league. I would also like to congratulate the AIFF and the I-League department for their hard work.”
The I-League which is in its twelfth season was nominated in the first place on the back of a couple of interesting seasons. After Aizawl FC won in 2016-17, the league caught attention worldwide as the success of the North-Eastern club was compared to Leicester City's 2015-16 Premier League winning campaign.
Minerva Punjab, another team which in its second year of top-flight football won the 2017-18 edition, capturing the imagination of the masses. In the last few years, Bengaluru FC, who now compete in the cash-rich Indian Super League, became the first team from India to participate in the final of the AFC Cup in 2016, after winning the 2015-16 I-League.
Despite the Indian Super League's growing popularity ever since its inception in 2014, the I-League has seen record attendances in the past couple of seasons. 2017-18 onwards, the ISL was awarded an AFC competition spot but only in the second-tier AFC Cup as the I-League continued to be the numero uno division in India, with the winners getting a crack at the AFC Champions League's qualifying rounds.
The AIFF's General Secretary Kushal Das and I-League CEO Sunando Dhar were in attendance in Bangkok on Tuesday. Das said, "This recognition comes two years after AIFF had won the Award for the AFC Developing Member Association of the Year Award in 2016. It is so satisfying to see that AIFF’s initiative for developing Hero I-League pan India and introducing the Club Licensing criteria has earned Indian Football this award."
“I would like to congratulate everyone who has been part of the League – FSDL, the Clubs, Hero, the fans, all other stakeholders and my colleagues in AIFF without whose support this wouldn’t have been possible.”
Sunandho Dhar stated that the league is on the right track and the award motivated the whole team to improve, "Nothing can be more inspiring. We have been on our job in the best manner possible and this Award is an indication that we are on the right track and is a motivation for us to do better.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the fans whose support means the world to us and all my colleagues in the League department,” he added.
The I-League this season is an eleven-team affair, including a team from the state of Jammu and Kashmir for the very first time in Indian football history. Real Kashmir FC won their ticket to the top of the nation's footballing pyramid after winning the 2017-18 2nd Division I-League.
Sorry about Mukhi's case but he is rightly getting punished for age fraud. I just worry he does not loose his form and comes back stronger..we need better players than Passi, Narzary etc .Also his lie has taken away the credit from Komal Thatal from actually being ISL's youngest goal scorer. Correct me if am wrong guys
He was banned once for age fraud, then why did he repeat again? The responsibility isnt only his. The club as well as his agent is at fault for fudging his age.
Indian Football Team: Is the preparation for Asian Cup 2019 good enough?
The lack of friendlies for the Blue Tigers might be a cause of concern leading up to Asia's showpiece event in the UAE next January...
Once the 2018 World Cup finished, the focus for most Indian football fans was the 2019 AFC Asian Cup for which the country had qualified after an eight-year hiatus.
The Indian national men's senior football team had three FIFA international windows between July 2018 and January 2019 to fine-tune preparations. However, they ended up playing only two friendlies out of a possible six!
A team like India, ranked 15th in Asia and 97th in the world, neither have a robust domestic league structure in which players would play at least 30-40 games a season nor do they have the history of being frequent participants in international tournaments.
To make matters worse, India is among the bottom three teams out of the 24 that are going to be at the Asian Cup that have played the least number of friendlies; tied with Yemen (two) and topping the list peculiarly is Turkmenistan, who haven't played at all!
Australia come fourth from bottom having played three games after taking the September window off. But it would be foolish to compare India and Australia in the same breath as the latter come fresh off a World Cup and are the defending champions.
India, in this period, started off with the senior team rested for the regional South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship in Bangladesh in September. One could argue that it was Team India that participated but head coach Stephen Constantine selected an Under-23 squad, out of which only Subhasish Bose and Anirudh Thapa are core members of the senior team.
Two group games, a semi-final and a final later, the assembled India side still could not lift the title after the Maldives beat them 2-1 in the final.
Cut to October, India made their first ever trip to China where they held Team Dragon to a goalless draw. The following month, they travelled to Amman where a game, almost on the verge of being cancelled ended up as the last recognized FIFA international friendly India would play before the Asian Cup.
On the other hand, India’s opponents in Group A which include hosts UAE, Thailand and Bahrain collectively have played 15 official friendlies till November. UAE went out of their way to organise an unofficial game in August against Andorra in Austria.
While Thailand took the September window off, they are playing in the 2018 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Cup where they are guaranteed four group stage games and also have an opportunity to play the two-legged semi-finals and possibly even the two-legged final.
The South-East Asian nation could get to play eight competitive games and coupled with their two friendlies, their tally of games could potentially hit double digits. However, four important Thai players, who ply their trade in Japan have not been included in their AFF Cup squad.
If one takes a look at Philippines, first-time entrants in the Asian Cup, they could play 13 games in this period. This includes their games in the ongoing AFF Cup and potential semifinals and finals. They also have lined up a game with Vietnam in Qatar on New Year’s Eve.
Palestine, who in their first appearance lost all group games in 2015 seem to have notched their preparations up this time around. They won the Bangabandhu Gold Cup after playing four games. Plus, they organised two unofficial games in August and have three friendlies lined up in December, which means they could play 13 games before their first Group B match against Syria in Sharjah.
Another extraordinary case of accumulating precious game time for the first team would be the Vietnamese FA after a lull in September. Their participation in the AFF Cup also guarantees them four competitive plus two and/or four knockout games. But, with no country ready to play them in October, their first team flew down to South Korea to play three Korean club sides.
The All India Football Federation’s (AIFF) inability to secure two games in the last couple of windows could cost team India dearly. Bad weather conditions prevented a chunk of the Indian contingent to reach Amman on time for their game on 17 November against Jordan as team India in entirety could only assemble with less than 24 hours to kickoff. That game was initially called off but later both parties went ahead. If not, the senior India team would have played a sum total of one game in three windows!
Even then, there was nothing Stephen Constantine would have learnt from this game given most of the players were playing out of position.
Earlier in 2018, India had booked Syria and Saudi Arabia for a game in October and November respectively but both pulled out. Incidentally, it was Saudi Arabia who then chose to play Jordan on 20 November, the reason as to why the Jordan-India game could not have been rescheduled in the first place. And it was a demand from India that they want a home game aganst Saudi that led to the cancellation of the fixture.
Looking ahead, the Indian FA and their Omani counterparts have agreed in principle on a game on 27 December in the UAE. Apart from that the Blue Tigers do not have anything else on their plate before their Asian Cup opener against Thailand on 6 January.
In this regard as well, the AIFF could have a lot to learn. The national camp for the Asian Cup commences on 17 December in New Delhi but by that time, Yemen, will have doubled up their count to four matches as they have games with Tajikistan and Palestine lined up in Qatar. It remains to be seen if at all India does play more than one game in the 20-day period.
That Award is ironical, paradoxical, oxymoron-whichever word fits the bill. Despite mismanaging I-League to favour another league/tournament, they are being felicitated. It is like Shakti Kapoor, Prem Chopra getting Me Too movement awards !!!
Regarding Friendlies, they should have planned in advance. They missed Asian games and sent juniors for SAFF. Everyone was flying in air with imaginary SWAFF and some Friendlies with Saudi Arabia due to SWAFF. Hua Kuch ??
Thats why SAFF tournament is important- take it as 4 Friendly matches as match practice for Senior Team.
This mindset of not organising any international Home match during Private Tournament will severely dent the preparation of National Team. England, Spain, Germany has no problem organising home international matches during Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga season, only India has problem. Proper Calendar and Advanced Planning for NT is required- not collecting the scraps after private tournament schedule is declared.
AIFF has lost its credibility lobg back. Failure to promote its own league, shoddy work in youth development, inability to quell rampant age fraud, submissive attitude to commercial partners. It has reached a point where there’s no point in blaming them knowing that they dont have any power in Indian Football. All their major decisions are being taken by FSDL including ISL, I-League, 2nd Division league and national team.
AFC Cup 2019: Draw results for Chennaiyin FC and Minerva Punjab FC
The ISL and I-League champions could battle it out in the AFC Cup group stages.....
Minerva Punjab and Chennaiyin FC could be facing each other in the AFC (Asian Football Confederation) Cup 2019 in Group E according to the draw held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Thursday.
Indian clubs Chennaiyin FC and Minerva Punjab, by virtue of winning the Indian Super League (ISL) and I-League respectively in the 2017-18 season, will be battling it out in the continental competition next season.
In case of Minerva Punjab, they will be up against Iranian club Saipa in the first round of the Preliminary qualifiers of the AFC Champions League (ACL). They will be playing away on February 12, 2019, in a one-off game. In case they negotiate that fixture, Qatar's Al Rayyan await them on February 19, 2019 - another one-off away fixture.
There shall be no standby club in case Minerva Punjab make it through from the ACL qualifiers. In case they lose any of these fixtures, the Warriors will drop down straight to the AFC Cup group stages in Group E:
Group E
Zone
Minerva Punjab
India
Bangladesh League winner
Bangladesh
Nepal League winner
Nepal
Chennaiyin FC vs Transport United/Colombo FC
India/Bhutan/Sri Lanka
The reigning ISL champions will begin their campaign from the AFC Cup Preliminary / Playoff Stage while their counterparts from the I-League will begin from the AFC Champions League (ACL) preliminary play-off stage.
As such, Chennaiyin FC need to negotiate a play-off round before securing their spot in the same.
Preliminary stage and playoff stage match schedule:
Zone
Stage
Match Date
Match No.
Match
South
Preliminary
Wed, 20 Feb 2019
PS 1.2 (1st Leg)
Colombo FC (SRI)
vs.
Transport United (BHU)
Wed, 27 Feb 2019
PS 1.2 (2nd Leg)
Transport United (BHU)
vs.
Colombo FC (SRI)
The Preliminary stage will see Sri Lanka's Colombo FC take on Bhutan's Transport United in a two-legged affair. The winner of that affair will play ISL champions Chennaiyin FC in the play-off stage in another two-legged tie for a spot in the group stages.
Commenting on the draw, Chennaiyin FC's Technical Director Amoy Ghoshal said, "It's a proud day for Chennaiyin FC. We were formed only in 2014. Then we won the ISL and have qualified for the AFC Cup on our first attempt. We knew we had to play the play-offs. it will be either Transport United or Colombo FC. Both are competitive teams.
"We are looking forward to qualifying to the group stage. That is our first target. We have the squad to do that even if the match comes in between our ISL season. The whole squad is motivated for the same."
Zone
Stage
Match Date
Match No.
Match
South
Playoff
Wed, 6 Mar 2019
S-PO (1st Leg)
Winner PS 1.2
vs.
Chennaiyin FC (IND)
Wed, 13 Mar 2019
S-PO (2nd Leg)
Chennaiyin FC (IND)
vs.
Winner PS 1.2
Clubs which share the stadium will not play its home matches on the same day. This applies in case of the two Indian clubs as the duo are likely to play their continental home matches at the TranStadia Arena in Ahmedabad.
Sunil Chetri played in ISL match today ? I was under the impression that he was unfit / injured due to Jhingan tackle.
What was the reason for his exclusion for Jordan match ? If injury, then he is Fit so fast.
Comments
SPIA Asia 2018: I-League adjudged runners-up in 'developing football league' by AFC
The All India Football Federation's (AIFF) flagship domestic club league, the I-League has been awarded the silver rank in 'Best Developing Football League of the Year' category by AFC (Asian Football Confederation)' at the 2018 SPIA (Sports Industry Awards) Asia awards night in Bangkok on Tuesday.
The I-League narrowly missed out on the top spot as Vietnam's V.League 1 bagged gold. Indonesia's Go-Jek Liga 1 won bronze.
The screen on the stage displayed 'Indian Super League' instead of I-League as the representatives from India, a mistake on the part of the organisers.
Praising the achievment, AIFF president Praful Patel said, "I need to thank the Asian Football Confederation for nominating us and SPIA Awards for the recognition. My heartiest congratulations to all the stakeholders, especially the Clubs who have been an integral part of the league. I would also like to congratulate the AIFF and the I-League department for their hard work.”
The I-League which is in its twelfth season was nominated in the first place on the back of a couple of interesting seasons. After Aizawl FC won in 2016-17, the league caught attention worldwide as the success of the North-Eastern club was compared to Leicester City's 2015-16 Premier League winning campaign.
Minerva Punjab, another team which in its second year of top-flight football won the 2017-18 edition, capturing the imagination of the masses. In the last few years, Bengaluru FC, who now compete in the cash-rich Indian Super League, became the first team from India to participate in the final of the AFC Cup in 2016, after winning the 2015-16 I-League.
Despite the Indian Super League's growing popularity ever since its inception in 2014, the I-League has seen record attendances in the past couple of seasons. 2017-18 onwards, the ISL was awarded an AFC competition spot but only in the second-tier AFC Cup as the I-League continued to be the numero uno division in India, with the winners getting a crack at the AFC Champions League's qualifying rounds.
The AIFF's General Secretary Kushal Das and I-League CEO Sunando Dhar were in attendance in Bangkok on Tuesday. Das said, "This recognition comes two years after AIFF had won the Award for the AFC Developing Member Association of the Year Award in 2016. It is so satisfying to see that AIFF’s initiative for developing Hero I-League pan India and introducing the Club Licensing criteria has earned Indian Football this award."
“I would like to congratulate everyone who has been part of the League – FSDL, the Clubs, Hero, the fans, all other stakeholders and my colleagues in AIFF without whose support this wouldn’t have been possible.”
Sunandho Dhar stated that the league is on the right track and the award motivated the whole team to improve, "Nothing can be more inspiring. We have been on our job in the best manner possible and this Award is an indication that we are on the right track and is a motivation for us to do better.
“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all the fans whose support means the world to us and all my colleagues in the League department,” he added.
The I-League this season is an eleven-team affair, including a team from the state of Jammu and Kashmir for the very first time in Indian football history. Real Kashmir FC won their ticket to the top of the nation's footballing pyramid after winning the 2017-18 2nd Division I-League.
Indian Football Team: Is the preparation for Asian Cup 2019 good enough?
Once the 2018 World Cup finished, the focus for most Indian football fans was the 2019 AFC Asian Cup for which the country had qualified after an eight-year hiatus.
The Indian national men's senior football team had three FIFA international windows between July 2018 and January 2019 to fine-tune preparations. However, they ended up playing only two friendlies out of a possible six!
A team like India, ranked 15th in Asia and 97th in the world, neither have a robust domestic league structure in which players would play at least 30-40 games a season nor do they have the history of being frequent participants in international tournaments.To make matters worse, India is among the bottom three teams out of the 24 that are going to be at the Asian Cup that have played the least number of friendlies; tied with Yemen (two) and topping the list peculiarly is Turkmenistan, who haven't played at all!
Australia come fourth from bottom having played three games after taking the September window off. But it would be foolish to compare India and Australia in the same breath as the latter come fresh off a World Cup and are the defending champions.
India, in this period, started off with the senior team rested for the regional South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championship in Bangladesh in September. One could argue that it was Team India that participated but head coach Stephen Constantine selected an Under-23 squad, out of which only Subhasish Bose and Anirudh Thapa are core members of the senior team.
Two group games, a semi-final and a final later, the assembled India side still could not lift the title after the Maldives beat them 2-1 in the final.
Cut to October, India made their first ever trip to China where they held Team Dragon to a goalless draw. The following month, they travelled to Amman where a game, almost on the verge of being cancelled ended up as the last recognized FIFA international friendly India would play before the Asian Cup.
On the other hand, India’s opponents in Group A which include hosts UAE, Thailand and Bahrain collectively have played 15 official friendlies till November. UAE went out of their way to organise an unofficial game in August against Andorra in Austria.
While Thailand took the September window off, they are playing in the 2018 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Cup where they are guaranteed four group stage games and also have an opportunity to play the two-legged semi-finals and possibly even the two-legged final.
The South-East Asian nation could get to play eight competitive games and coupled with their two friendlies, their tally of games could potentially hit double digits. However, four important Thai players, who ply their trade in Japan have not been included in their AFF Cup squad.
If one takes a look at Philippines, first-time entrants in the Asian Cup, they could play 13 games in this period. This includes their games in the ongoing AFF Cup and potential semifinals and finals. They also have lined up a game with Vietnam in Qatar on New Year’s Eve.
Palestine, who in their first appearance lost all group games in 2015 seem to have notched their preparations up this time around. They won the Bangabandhu Gold Cup after playing four games. Plus, they organised two unofficial games in August and have three friendlies lined up in December, which means they could play 13 games before their first Group B match against Syria in Sharjah.
Another extraordinary case of accumulating precious game time for the first team would be the Vietnamese FA after a lull in September. Their participation in the AFF Cup also guarantees them four competitive plus two and/or four knockout games. But, with no country ready to play them in October, their first team flew down to South Korea to play three Korean club sides.
The All India Football Federation’s (AIFF) inability to secure two games in the last couple of windows could cost team India dearly. Bad weather conditions prevented a chunk of the Indian contingent to reach Amman on time for their game on 17 November against Jordan as team India in entirety could only assemble with less than 24 hours to kickoff. That game was initially called off but later both parties went ahead. If not, the senior India team would have played a sum total of one game in three windows!
Even then, there was nothing Stephen Constantine would have learnt from this game given most of the players were playing out of position.
Earlier in 2018, India had booked Syria and Saudi Arabia for a game in October and November respectively but both pulled out. Incidentally, it was Saudi Arabia who then chose to play Jordan on 20 November, the reason as to why the Jordan-India game could not have been rescheduled in the first place. And it was a demand from India that they want a home game aganst Saudi that led to the cancellation of the fixture.
Looking ahead, the Indian FA and their Omani counterparts have agreed in principle on a game on 27 December in the UAE. Apart from that the Blue Tigers do not have anything else on their plate before their Asian Cup opener against Thailand on 6 January.
In this regard as well, the AIFF could have a lot to learn. The national camp for the Asian Cup commences on 17 December in New Delhi but by that time, Yemen, will have doubled up their count to four matches as they have games with Tajikistan and Palestine lined up in Qatar. It remains to be seen if at all India does play more than one game in the 20-day period.
Regarding Friendlies, they should have planned in advance. They missed Asian games and sent juniors for SAFF. Everyone was flying in air with imaginary SWAFF and some Friendlies with Saudi Arabia due to SWAFF. Hua Kuch ??
Thats why SAFF tournament is important- take it as 4 Friendly matches as match practice for Senior Team.
This mindset of not organising any international Home match during Private Tournament will severely dent the preparation of National Team.
England, Spain, Germany has no problem organising home international matches during Premier League, Bundesliga, La Liga season, only India has problem.
Proper Calendar and Advanced Planning for NT is required- not collecting the scraps after private tournament schedule is declared.
https://epaper.timesgroup.com/Olive/ODN/TimesOfIndia/#
This is a 3-year tie up. They will be headed by a full time Head Coach from Atleti, and send 20 players in 3 years to Madrid for training.
AFC Cup 2019: Draw results for Chennaiyin FC and Minerva Punjab FC
Minerva Punjab and Chennaiyin FC could be facing each other in the AFC (Asian Football Confederation) Cup 2019 in Group E according to the draw held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Thursday.
Indian clubs Chennaiyin FC and Minerva Punjab, by virtue of winning the Indian Super League (ISL) and I-League respectively in the 2017-18 season, will be battling it out in the continental competition next season.
In case of Minerva Punjab, they will be up against Iranian club Saipa in the first round of the Preliminary qualifiers of the AFC Champions League (ACL). They will be playing away on February 12, 2019, in a one-off game. In case they negotiate that fixture, Qatar's Al Rayyan await them on February 19, 2019 - another one-off away fixture.There shall be no standby club in case Minerva Punjab make it through from the ACL qualifiers. In case they lose any of these fixtures, the Warriors will drop down straight to the AFC Cup group stages in Group E:
The reigning ISL champions will begin their campaign from the AFC Cup Preliminary / Playoff Stage while their counterparts from the I-League will begin from the AFC Champions League (ACL) preliminary play-off stage.
As such, Chennaiyin FC need to negotiate a play-off round before securing their spot in the same.
Preliminary stage and playoff stage match schedule:
(1st Leg)
(2nd Leg)
The Preliminary stage will see Sri Lanka's Colombo FC take on Bhutan's Transport United in a two-legged affair. The winner of that affair will play ISL champions Chennaiyin FC in the play-off stage in another two-legged tie for a spot in the group stages.
Commenting on the draw, Chennaiyin FC's Technical Director Amoy Ghoshal said, "It's a proud day for Chennaiyin FC. We were formed only in 2014. Then we won the ISL and have qualified for the AFC Cup on our first attempt. We knew we had to play the play-offs. it will be either Transport United or Colombo FC. Both are competitive teams.
"We are looking forward to qualifying to the group stage. That is our first target. We have the squad to do that even if the match comes in between our ISL season. The whole squad is motivated for the same."
(1st Leg)
(IND)
(2nd Leg)
(IND)
Clubs which share the stadium will not play its home matches on the same day. This applies in case of the two Indian clubs as the duo are likely to play their continental home matches at the TranStadia Arena in Ahmedabad.