Follow CNBC International on Twitter and Facebook. And with all the grassroots academy system being implemented all over the country, the growth of the sport will continue to rise for the foreseeable future!' Seeking to culminate a season characterized by ups and downs on a triumphant note, FC Goa and Chennaiyin FC lock horns on Sunday. 'The whole infrastructure has changed thanks to the ISL, and players are getting more in depth and experienced coaching. ISL 2015 final: Zico, Materazzi eye title triumph in India. Earlier this month, Chinese consortium CMC invested $400 million for a 13 percent stake in City Football Group, owners of Manchester City.ĭespite the obstacles, ATK's Hume believes the standard of the game in India will only get better and better. China, India's top economic rival in Asia, has bolstered its international presence by undertaking a slew of recent deals as President Xi Jinping aims to transform the world's second-largest economy into a soccer superpower. Indeed, several developing nations face similar issues. Football is on television every day of the week but we need to convert those fans from observers to participants.' 'We need to create a football culture in India. The organization is hoping to resolve the latter obstacle by commencing a national league for players under 15 this year. Some of the key hindrances to popularizing the sport are the absence of good facilities nationwide, the reluctance of parents to allow their children to play soccer instead of studying, as well as a lack of competitions for young players, O'Donnell explained. So far, India has lost all five of their matches for the 2018 World Cup qualifiers and is currently ranked 166th in FIFA's global rankings, but the national team still has a shot at qualifying for the 2019 Asian Cup. 'We have to continue to do what we started years ago: getting more boys and girls playing football.'

'We are simply not good enough, yet,' said Scott O'Donnell, technical director of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), the governing institution for the sport. More importantly, the quality of play has improved as well.Īs of December 13, the ISL season has witnessed 50 more goals than 2014, Star India noted, adding that teams have also displayed better passing accuracy, more shots, a better goal conversion rate, and eight hat-tricks, versus just one last year.īut can all this local fever translate into a World Cup qualification? 'I think the love for the game in India has always been there, but now having it marketed a lot better and having all the matches televised, it's made it accessible to everybody,' said 32-year old Hume, who jokes that he's unable to visit local shops without being bombarded by photo requests.

Isl football 2015