Peter Vaz, President, Sporting Clube de Goa
By ringing in the changes to the I-League format, introducing the cap for the number of teams for Goa which is the present Mecca of Indian football, and permitting and actively promoting the IPL-style franchisee league bang in the middle of the football season, AIFF has sounded the death knell for club football in India.
Momentous decisions have been taken by an Emergency Committee. One fails to understand what the emergency was about other than bypassing the AIFF Executive Committee and the Clubs. The I-League has been broken up into Western and Eastern conference without any consultation whatsoever with the clubs, who are the main stake holders. When the AIFF is getting its entire revenue from the I-League marketing rights, why was the AIFF afraid to call a meeting of the I-league Committee wherein all the clubs are represented in order to discuss the change in the I-League structure? This shows AIFF’s lack of respect for the clubs who are the backbone of Indian football.
None of the top football playing nations has the Conference model league structure. And at a time when we are trying to emulate the best practices, this decision to implement the conference model is a retrograde step. This will devalue the league, converting it to a regional league and make it harder to sell to sponsors and broadcasters alike. This conference model can even throw up a scenario where Goan and Kolkata fans might miss the excitement of a live contest between their respective teams. It is clear that the sole purpose of the change in league structure is to accommodate IMG Reliance and their franchisee league.
As regards the capping of the number of teams in any particular venue/city, it appears that decision is solely targeted at Goan teams. By intentionally clubbing together Kolkata, a city, and Goa, a state, it is clear that the entire Goa is treated as one venue for this purpose. Is Goa being punished for efficiency and good performance, and may be for its bold step to declare football as the state sport? How was this decision, which has grave implications on Goan football, allowed to be taken without proper resistance from the Goan representative on the AIFF Emergency Committee?
On one hand, AIFF sets up a deadline for existing I-league Clubs to start constructing their own stadium or refurbish an existing stadium latest by June 2015 and on the other it is restricting the number of teams in a city/state from the same deadline. After investing heavily in one place, does the AIFF expect one team to re-locate elsewhere?
You cannot restrict the growth of apples in Kashmir in order to promote its growth in some other location. Similarly, one cannot spread the footprint of football in India by restricting it in places where it is doing well. Rather, one must activate the defunct and inactive state associations and their functionaries. Instead of imposing caps, AIFF should activate all its member associations and encourage grassroots football development and help to promote the state leagues. Big states like Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu which have produced so many top footballers in the past are presently in limbo. AIFF should take some steps to resurrect football in these places.
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