I feel having regular invitational friendlies with stronger teams on FIFA dates will be useful than these tournaments. Invitational friendlies on FIFA date will more likely to be their main squad or B squad (at worst) not being U-23 or any developmental sides. If the quality is not ensured, then this tournament will result in same fate as Nehru Cup. Moreover, it will be costing lower to call up a single good team than calling up 4 average or below average teams. There are also lots of small things like August is a monsoon season in India (low quality pitch and game), many African leagues start in August/September and Asian & American Leagues are at the end of the season causing many good teams to send their development squad than main squad, etc.
Tournaments like Nehru Cup are a lifeline for AIFF. What happenes is that whenever any federation signs up a deal with Sponsor, there is a clause that "A" number of matches will be played by the National team in a given season. For last 15 years or so, World Cup Qualification lasted only 2 matches Home and Away. Asia Cup qualifiers were also erratic with AFC Challenge Cup being played here and there. Only SAFF Cup was regularly played. So Nehru Cup filled the void with providing NT with atleast 5 matches to fulfill the sponsorship commitments of AIFF towards their Main Sponsors and remaining quota can be filled with some Friendlies. It is only now that such extended World Cup and AFC Asia Cup Qualification process is there that our NT is playing so many matches. From next year, this will dry out, so AIFF needs such tournaments. Just 4-5 Friendlies in one year at the max will not fulfill the AIFF sponsorship obligations.
@BrainFallINDIA Panasonic had this clause of "A" number of matches as a pre-condition for sponsoring. I will find out the same with Nike deal with AIFF.
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It is only now that such extended World Cup and AFC Asia Cup Qualification process is there that our NT is playing so many matches. From next year, this will dry out, so AIFF needs such tournaments. Just 4-5 Friendlies in one year at the max will not fulfill the AIFF sponsorship obligations.
Why sudden love towards NT when u hadn't allowed NT to play matches in international breaks during ISL