Crowd support in Indian football
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Hi, please use this to discuss the about crowd support in India.
Also give suggestion for improvement and ideas on initiative we can take as a community to popularise football more.
Also give suggestion for improvement and ideas on initiative we can take as a community to popularise football more.
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Lack Of Spectators At Top Division Matches In Goa Raises Doubts On Goa’s Passion For Football
Besides the stereotypical sun, sea and sand, Goa’s next obsession is football. The world’s most beautiful game is the most popular sport in the state which belongs to a cricket-crazy India. But if Goa is really passionate about football, then why is there a poor turnout of spectators for the I-League, AFC Cup and Goa Pro-League matches? This is a fact that’s hard to understand.
Goan clubs have been impressive in the Indian football circuit consistently. Clubs like Dempo and Churchill Brothers have made their mark recently, with Dempo being the first Indian club to reach the semi-final of the AFC Cup in 2008. Yet, one of the most common sights at top level matches played in Goa (Nehru Stadium, Fatorda or Tilak Maidan, Vasco or Duler Stadium, Mapusa) are the empty stands.
It is surprising to see thousands of spectators throng at the local inter-village games that are far more sub-standard compared to the GFA-organised underage tournaments. The I-League and AFC Cup games certainly have much more thrill to offer.
Goal.com attempts to find out the reasons for this problem and spoke to some eminent personalities who have been associated with the beautiful game for several years from the .
This is what they had to say…
Savio Messias (Former secretary of Goa Football Association)
The biggest reason to this problem is that the clubs have not created any fan-base programmes. There are no youth fan clubs. Why are the top European teams flourishing? It’s simply because they have created fan base programmes and fan clubs throughout the world. Their visibility is their strong point. Are any clubs doing this? The jerseys of big Goan teams are not available anywhere? Where should a fan purchase the merchandise from? Besides that, school children don’t even recognize the top players from the clubs. Whereas, if you show them a picture of Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney or any top European player, the kids will not only tell you the players’ names but also their jersey numbers. Hence visibility and corporate social responsibility is crucial.
Stanislaus D'Souza (Sports Editor, Times of India - Goa)
One of the major reasons is that the games are not played under floodlights. People can't leave their work and come. Most of them are working. Earlier when the matches were played in the evenings, there was a better turn out. At one point of time there was an overdose of teams back with six from Goa in a league consisting of 12 teams. It was too much for the fans to come for every game. Yes, village games do see a better crowd as the games are mostly played in the evenings. Also since the matches are in villages, the local people do turn up.
Jovito Lopes (Sports Editor, OHerald)
There are several reasons, not just one to mention. The most striking reason is that the standard of the I-League is awful. It stands nowhere in comparison to the English Premier League or La Liga. The I-League is poorly administrated including inappropriate scheduling of the matches. Matches need to be played under floodlights and not the scorching sun at 4pm. How do you expect the working class to attend the matches at that time? To add to it the stadiums are not spectator –friendly. Lastly, the glamour is missing in the sport. There has to be some glitter. The authorities have failed to attract celebrities to the sport. The matches are also not telecast live on any channel. Overall, there is a lot to be done to attract spectators for the matches.
Vishwas Gaonkar (Former coach of Sporting Clube de Goa and Sesa Football Academy)
Yes, inter-village matches attract more crowd compared to the I-League. This is because, the spectators feel associated to the club as their relatives or friends are a part of the team. Hence they are expected to witness the matches. The problem with the I-League clubs is that they do not field many Goan players. Except for Dempo, I don’t see any other club encouraging Goan talent. People are bound to avoid matches if they don’t see their dear ones being part of it.
Fausto Lobo (Former Churchill Brothers and Dempo player)
First of all there are less Goan players playing in the top division tournaments. Even if there are, they are not giving consistent performances. Some bigger names should appear in Goan football as, currently, the young players cannot consider anyone as their idol. We require someone of Bhaichung Bhutia’s standard at least. Sometimes it also looks like the people have lost interest and everyone seems busy with their person life.
Lawrence Gomes (Ex-India International)
I guess the entertainment factor is missing. The authorities should organize some entertainment programmes during the half-time may be. They could probably get some Goan pop stars to perform. The reason why people prefer inter-village matches is the game of ‘Housie’ played during the break. The spectators get something in return as they enjoy a mid-evening match.
Well, these may sound as an overdose of reasons. But, arguably, they are the most accepted facts. Another question to ask is, whether things will improve if the above problems are worked upon?
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OFFICIAL ATTENDANCE| For tonight's game was 9,236. Perth Glory thanks everyone for attending. See you on January 5.
tweeted by @PerthGloryFC 3 hours ago. atleast few indian clubs get more crowd support than this IN STADIUM PAID OR FREE.
> Joyptan said:
> OFFICIAL ATTENDANCE| For tonight's game was 9,236. Perth Glory thanks everyone for attending. See you on January 5.
>
> tweeted by @PerthGloryFC 3 hours ago. atleast few indian clubs get more crowd support than this IN STADIUM PAID OR FREE.
A very valid point made by one guy in the article was that some Goan teams have very few Goans playing for them.
I hate to say it, but the fact is that most people dont like players from other states to take the place of Goans. That is the main reason why Colaco keeps robbing the better Goans players from the other teams so he gets the bragging rights. And it works, as we can clearly see that Dempo gets the best crowd. Many people from South Goa have stopped supporting Churchill for this very reason as there are hardly 2-3 goans in the first 18 players. So teams should also take this into consideration while selecting players.
Cataluniya = Goa interms of general publics thinking
But having many goan players brings more crowd to stadium then every goan club should promote more goan players in first team or atleast in first 18.
> Joyptan said:
> Cataluniya = Goa interms of general publics thinking
Dont just make some VAGUE comments for the sake of making one. Your comments should be self explanatory and not left to the whims and fancies of people's imagination.