This post is a tad bit lengthy. I urge you to read it, be informed and spread the word
"I saw Brazilian fans holding their hands on their chest whilst the 222 second long Brazilian anthem was played. And I had tears rolling down my eyes because my country's anthem is not being played" said Nita Ambani in 2014 when asked what was her inspiration to promote ISL.
The self proclaimed "First lady of Indian Sprots " is partnered with IMG and now, IMG - Reliance is messing with Indian football.
The issue is not with ISL here, but with IMG - R. ISL is producing talents, yes, but at the cost of Indian football. This post is to enlighten you guys before you are also engulfed in the smoke that is IMG - R.
The following is your food for enlightenment :-
There are 3 major problems with this league
1. IMG - R are not releasing Indian players to practice with the national team ahead of time. All other countries are given a great amount of time to practice with the team, at least 10 - 15 days, but our players get only 3 days including match day.
Our players are still playing in ISL with less than 5 days to go for the World cup qualifier against Turkmenistan. If we win games and get points in these games, our ranks would be higher and we get to play in Asian competitions.
So I want to ask Mrs.Ambani, will you be able to listen to the Indian national anthem at the world cup if your precious glory league doesn't look at the greater good?
2. Domestic Indian leagues like Durand cup and federation cup are no more. This kills more indian talent. And we stand to lose our accreditation with FIFA, if it happens.
3. IMG - R is using football to make their pockets heavier. Their caption is Come on India, Let's football. What's actually happening is "Let's exploit football"
If there was a unified league in India, there won't be such issues with large corporates banking upon an Idea. There are comparisons made to Chelsea, ManUnited and Arsenal , but who is looking at the situation here at home with respect to domestic clubs?
There is a cloud cast over us with media writing about IMG - R developing grass root talents, but this is utter BS. Bidyananda is a brilliant player currently representing India U - 19. Is he given a chance in ISL? No sir. It's either established Indian players or retired foreign players. There is no grass root development happening.
Amount of money spent for ISL season 1 was north of 350 crores in all expenditure and there is not one grass root player whom we have seen being developed or heard about.
I was at the opening ceremony of this glory hunting league yesterday and WOW. Was it amazing with the fireworks and the promotions and the celebrities just to name some of the fanfare.
If that amount money was invested in I league, teams like Mohammedan Sporting, which is in its 124th year of operation wouldn't be thinking of shutting shop.
The football being played by one of the oldest clubs in India at Fatorda, wouldn't have to be witness to only 500 people. With right marketing and getting the news out Dempo fans would willingly fill the stands.
Our media is too scared to write about these things and fight the corporates. And they don't care. Our media cares about Alia bhat ka naach gaana and return of Aishwarya Rai. They don't care about what actually matters.
Unlike Nita Ambani, I have a dream of singing our national anthem at a world cup game and I will do everything possible in my power to do it.
I again reiterate, the issue is not with ISL, but with IMG - R who are using Indian football for their own gain and is not concentrated with development of the game.
Come on India, Let's football, let's not let corporates exploit football.
Just to tell you how illogical this league is, look at the photo of the moment when ISL season 2 was declared open. Not a single footballer in the photo, to declare a footballing competition open.
Everyone blames the ISL for Indian football’s mess but were we any better prior to the advent of ISL? Our I-League was non-existent with nobody caring about it. Dempo SC won five national titles but nobody came forward to sponsor them. Why should they? What’s the point in sponsoring when there are no returns?
ISL has got the world talking about Indian football. What’s wrong with that? Better players are lining-up to come to India. Can you imagine Zico or Roberto Carlos coaching Indian clubs in the I-League? Can anyone imagine what it means to be attracting such names?
IMG-R have not made any money on the ISL. They have run into losses. Eventually, as the league gets better, they may recover their investment and even make profits but are we not benefiting as well with a quality product?
Can anyone cross their heart and tell me I-League matches are better than ISL? Look at the crowd who come for ISL matches. They may be plastic but at least they are filling the stadium.
Ask the players if they want to play the I-League or the ISL. If anyone says I-League, I will turn away from the ISL.
Many have said this league was not needed and instead corporates should have supported existing I-League clubs. But anyone who has seriously watched Indian football knows that such a move would have been a recipe for disaster. Can you expect Mohun Bagan and East Bengal to do all that the ISL franchisees are doing? Even if there are corporate sponsors for clubs, there is no guarantee that there will be success. I-League clubs are still stuck in their own world and there is very little that can change them, except may be for professional examples like Pune FC and Bengaluru FC.
I have been an Indian football supporter for more than two decades. Have seen the ups and downs. And I have never been happier attending ISL games than I have ever been, except for the inaugural National Football League in 1996.
In India, only cricket and Bollywood works. So if football has to ride on their backs until it can stand on its own feet, so be it.
The ISL has made a good beginning. Please don’t kill this with your hatred. Instead, give the ISL a chance and, if possible, integrate both the leagues into one full-fledged competition.
The ISL has its flaws. No doubt about that. But at least it has got people to the stadiums, better foreign players to India, increased pay-packet for our players and the world talking how the sleeping giant is actually trying to get out of bed.
U wont get too many likes here bro....now wait for the brickbats to flood !!!
Img-r is a fact of life for indian football, no amount of posts and flags from westblockblues will change that. Just look at the no's of posts for #ISL and compare with other domestic tournament....bidyananda will have to join southern samity or chanmari fc if he wants to play regular football and national team coach will keep getting ridiculed by ISL know it alls
goalkeeper, you stated some good points through both ileague and isl.
One thing i would like to state is the chalta hai attitude of most of the i-league clubs regarding professionalism.I still recollects how AIFF had to run from pillar to post to make the clubs comply with the afc club licensing criteria a few years back. IF it weren't for the federation how many clubs would have gone the churchill brothers way.
And of course, cause you know me as the bastard I am, I do need to respond to what you said
Anti-ISL:
I agree 100% that the problem is not the league, but who runs it, IMG-Reliance. Nita Ambani is not a football administrator. He role in the ISL and Indian football should be left at the same level as Prince William, who is the President of the Football Association in England. He is president but he does not do shit, just gives away medals and stuff at important events. That is all Nita should do, nothing more but she needs more lime-light. During the award ceremony of the Chennaiyin game, when an ATK player was called up to get an award, Vita Dani told the player to move and it was obvious it was because Nita would be blocked from the camera's view if he did not move.
Anyway, moving away from the serpent, the three main problems: First problem is correct and justified. My personal conspiracy reason is that the goal of the ISL is to see India in a World Cup by 2026 and they want to be the reason for it, so they are making the team look like shit for now and then as more players are made from the ISL they will do more for India and thus when we do somehow get into an Asian Cup or World Cup it will be all about how the ISL and Nita made it all possible... but that is just my evil conspiracy on this.
Second point I don't think is valid. MLS uses the regular season as the league and play-offs as a domestic cup (to go along with the US Open Cup) so why can't the ISL do the same? You also have that the ISL can be considered a domestic tournament. It is basically a glamorized Federation Cup... a league season then ending with a knock-out competition. Only way I see FIFA getting involved is if they start to get fed up with India's two league system and force a merger or conclusion to this or we face expulsion (with the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup tied to India, I doubt that happens till after 2017). We do stand to lose AFC points though.
Third one, eh. It's their slogan. The rest? Well, they are doing grassroots. They have started with camps from U10 to U14 and now we have the Reliance Camp. As we all well know, there was a lot of uncertainty around the 2014 ISL season and how well it would do financially and while the revenue was amazing and way over expectations, we saw a lot of debt, more than we thought. Investing in grassroots in the way we would want, like academies, would cost money, lots. There is to much risk in spending money on proper grassroots at this moment but hopefully as time goes, and the league gets longer, we will see initial investment there but I am not surprised it is not happening.
As for Bidyananda, wasn't he said to be rubbish for the U19's recently? I mean, ideally he is the perfect boy IMG would want as he holds a lot to market. The Indian boy who is under-20, trialed with clubs like Barcelona, and if he does well can be said to be developed by ISL... he is perfect for them! But honestly, he is probably not that good. We have seen U20 players in the ISL, like Alen Deory for example. You also have to keep in mind that you are allowed at least 5 Indians on the field and you can field an entire Indian XI in ISL if you want but not many coaches will do that since the league is fast-paced (games every few days), and a result could really change your standing in the table, and probably some other reasons. Either way, it is no surprised that there is reliance on established Indian players in a league like this.
As for investing this money into clubs like say, Mohammedan, why? I mean, Mohammedan does have a fanbase in India that is as good as many ISL teams so why are the sponsors not going for them, and I don't local ones, but guys at a tier of the ISL? Bengaluru FC was only around for one season but then they got sponsors. East Bengal and Mohun Bagan are known for their "20th century" style of running of a club for a reason. Of course though, you do mention this in the Pro-ISL section.
As for the media... media kicked our ass after India lost to Guam. The media is not scared. We have seen so many articles for years about the problems in the I-League, the small crowds, the bad quality etc etc but obviously that will be no where near the amount of articles done for the ISL. Its simple. People want to read about the ISL while the I-League, well, does not really attract the interest of general people.
Comments
This post is a tad bit lengthy. I urge you to read it, be informed and spread the word
"I saw Brazilian fans holding their hands on their chest whilst the 222 second long Brazilian anthem was played. And I had tears rolling down my eyes because my country's anthem is not being played" said Nita Ambani in 2014 when asked what was her inspiration to promote ISL.
The self proclaimed "First lady of Indian Sprots " is partnered with IMG and now, IMG - Reliance is messing with Indian football.
The issue is not with ISL here, but with IMG - R. ISL is producing talents, yes, but at the cost of Indian football. This post is to enlighten you guys before you are also engulfed in the smoke that is IMG - R.
The following is your food for enlightenment :-
There are 3 major problems with this league
1. IMG - R are not releasing Indian players to practice with the national team ahead of time. All other countries are given a great amount of time to practice with the team, at least 10 - 15 days, but our players get only 3 days including match day.
Our players are still playing in ISL with less than 5 days to go for the World cup qualifier against Turkmenistan. If we win games and get points in these games, our ranks would be higher and we get to play in Asian competitions.
So I want to ask Mrs.Ambani, will you be able to listen to the Indian national anthem at the world cup if your precious glory league doesn't look at the greater good?
2. Domestic Indian leagues like Durand cup and federation cup are no more. This kills more indian talent. And we stand to lose our accreditation with FIFA, if it happens.
3. IMG - R is using football to make their pockets heavier. Their caption is Come on India, Let's football.
What's actually happening is "Let's exploit football"
If there was a unified league in India, there won't be such issues with large corporates banking upon an Idea. There are comparisons made to Chelsea, ManUnited and Arsenal , but who is looking at the situation here at home with respect to domestic clubs?
There is a cloud cast over us with media writing about IMG - R developing grass root talents, but this is utter BS. Bidyananda is a brilliant player currently representing India U - 19. Is he given a chance in ISL? No sir. It's either established Indian players or retired foreign players. There is no grass root development happening.
Amount of money spent for ISL season 1 was north of 350 crores in all expenditure and there is not one grass root player whom we have seen being developed or heard about.
I was at the opening ceremony of this glory hunting league yesterday and WOW. Was it amazing with the fireworks and the promotions and the celebrities just to name some of the fanfare.
If that amount money was invested in I league, teams like Mohammedan Sporting, which is in its 124th year of operation wouldn't be thinking of shutting shop.
The football being played by one of the oldest clubs in India at Fatorda, wouldn't have to be witness to only 500 people. With right marketing and getting the news out Dempo fans would willingly fill the stands.
Our media is too scared to write about these things and fight the corporates. And they don't care. Our media cares about Alia bhat ka naach gaana and return of Aishwarya Rai. They don't care about what actually matters.
Unlike Nita Ambani, I have a dream of singing our national anthem at a world cup game and I will do everything possible in my power to do it.
I again reiterate, the issue is not with ISL, but with IMG - R who are using Indian football for their own gain and is not concentrated with development of the game.
Come on India, Let's football, let's not let corporates exploit football.
Just to tell you how illogical this league is, look at the photo of the moment when ISL season 2 was declared open. Not a single footballer in the photo, to declare a footballing competition open.
Everyone blames the ISL for Indian football’s mess but were we any better prior to the advent of ISL? Our I-League was non-existent with nobody caring about it. Dempo SC won five national titles but nobody came forward to sponsor them. Why should they? What’s the point in sponsoring when there are no returns?
ISL has got the world talking about Indian football. What’s wrong with that? Better players are lining-up to come to India. Can you imagine Zico or Roberto Carlos coaching Indian clubs in the I-League? Can anyone imagine what it means to be attracting such names?
IMG-R have not made any money on the ISL. They have run into losses. Eventually, as the league gets better, they may recover their investment and even make profits but are we not benefiting as well with a quality product?
Can anyone cross their heart and tell me I-League matches are better than ISL? Look at the crowd who come for ISL matches. They may be plastic but at least they are filling the stadium.
Ask the players if they want to play the I-League or the ISL. If anyone says I-League, I will turn away from the ISL.
Many have said this league was not needed and instead corporates should have supported existing I-League clubs. But anyone who has seriously watched Indian football knows that such a move would have been a recipe for disaster. Can you expect Mohun Bagan and East Bengal to do all that the ISL franchisees are doing? Even if there are corporate sponsors for clubs, there is no guarantee that there will be success. I-League clubs are still stuck in their own world and there is very little that can change them, except may be for professional examples like Pune FC and Bengaluru FC.
I have been an Indian football supporter for more than two decades. Have seen the ups and downs. And I have never been happier attending ISL games than I have ever been, except for the inaugural National Football League in 1996.
In India, only cricket and Bollywood works. So if football has to ride on their backs until it can stand on its own feet, so be it.
The ISL has made a good beginning. Please don’t kill this with your hatred. Instead, give the ISL a chance and, if possible, integrate both the leagues into one full-fledged competition.
The ISL has its flaws. No doubt about that. But at least it has got people to the stadiums, better foreign players to India, increased pay-packet for our players and the world talking how the sleeping giant is actually trying to get out of bed.
Img-r is a fact of life for indian football, no amount of posts and flags from westblockblues will change that. Just look at the no's of posts for #ISL and compare with other domestic tournament....bidyananda will have to join southern samity or chanmari fc if he wants to play regular football and national team coach will keep getting ridiculed by ISL know it alls