Another shot at goal

Can the Indian Super League revive domestic football?

There is a good chance that the Indian Super League, or ISL, will give Indian football a second wind. In the last few years, while Indians have become more and more football-crazy, their appetite for domestic games has dwindled. That's because its quality is abysmal when compared to the fare that is available on television, showing soccer matches played in Europe and other continents. ISL will get viewership only if the skills on display are at least as good as what India has seen before. This is where the organisers, IMG Reliance and Star TV, feel they have done the right thing: each of the eight teams will be allowed to play up to six overseas players. Each is expected to spend up to Rs 15 crore to hire players for a season. While this is substantially more than what footballers currently get paid in India, it is unlikely to be enough to lure the stars of global football, even for a week or two. Many people fear ISL will end up becoming a parking lot for discards. That's why the organisers are targeting recently-retired footballers who still have high brand recall. With this money, they might agree to come in for the eight-week long tournament.

In 2007, when the Indian League, or I-League, was launched, there were similar hopes that it would take Indian football to new heights. But it failed to live up to the promise, because the teams never made enough money. The gate money has remained insignificant (the average attendance at an I-League match is not more than 4,000), in-stadia advertisements are almost nil and broadcasting rights are sold for a song. In 2011, the well-known clubs, JCT Phagwara and Mahindra United, were disbanded by JCT Mills and Mahindra & Mahindra, respectively, because they had become financially unviable.

Keeping this in mind, the organisers of ISL have agreed to share 80 per cent of the advertising revenue generated on television with the teams. This, along with sponsorship rights and gate money, could meet half of each team's first-season expenditure of Rs 40 crore. The teams know there is no way they can make money in the first three or four years. But that could change in the future. It is hoped that advertising revenue on television will eventually increase substantially - many brands want to diversify from cricket because of the clutter. Still others, like those in the e-commerce space, want to connect with younger people but find cricket too expensive. In fact, many brands have begun to invest heavily in football at the grassroots level in the hope that it will pick up momentum in the country soon.

What could also draw viewers to domestic football in the future is India's performance at the 2017 Under-17 World Cup. As the host, India will get a direct slot in the quarter-finals. If the team manages to reach the next stage, it could improve involvement in domestic football. The current football push has the blessings of the sport's global authority, FIFA, which is keen to popularise the sport in India and China: the final frontiers. The Union sports ministry too has committed Rs 120 crore for the World Cup. Only the All-India Football Federation, which has given the rights for domestic football for 15 years to IMG Reliance for $150 million (about Rs 900 crore at the current exchange rate), is yet to announce concrete steps to lift the standard of football in the country.

Similar leagues have helped other sports in the country. The impact of the Indian Premier League on cricketing infrastructure and talent is well known, in spite of the various unsavoury controversies that have surrounded it time and again. The Hockey India League and the Indian Badminton League too have helped to promote hockey and badminton, respectively, in the country. Perhaps ISL can do the same for football.