When will we see India in a FIFA WC?

greenchutney · Jul 8th, 2006, 05:48

India falls in love with football
7 July 2006
by FIFAworldcup.com
A former coach of India and Nepal, Englishman Stephen Constantine has spent the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ analysing events in Germany for the Indian television network Times Now.
Constantine, a FIFA Instructor, explains the passion for football he has witnessed on his return to India, where he was in charge of the national team from 2002-2005.

from this coaches website...

About Stephen Constantine and India Tenure
you can read his India Bio. impressive..and 'gladdening' that we beat rwanda...arent everbody fighting there...or hungry?...and we lost to bangladesh!!..

calling hiddink, scolari or eriksson would do as well...

tornado989 · Jul 8th, 2006, 06:53

I like this thread. While I agree with a lot of member opinions here, I would also like to add that unlike other nations, people's mentality of adopting or integrating "sports" in general into their lives deeply isn't as strong as say in the US or other western nations. Kids are encouraged to spend time studying more and consider sports or games as secondary time killers... (something not to be considered strongly)... IMO, when this mentality shifts a little, and with some assistance from the government and other state agencies, sports clubs, associations, India as a nation can get big into other physical sports like soccer. Note I say, get big... India already has teams in field hockey, tennis, soccer, wrestling but they are not properly funded or dont have adequate resources to grow. Only a shift of cultural mentality wld help the situation progress orrr if people are reluctant to switch.. then I am afraid... it's just cricket that we wld be watching/following and raving about... eventhough the cricket administration of India is a joke!

peace

sam371 · Jul 8th, 2006, 07:01

If I had to guess, I would say 2018. They got a long way to go. Although folks in Calcutta are crazy about soccer. They even have a decent soccer league there.

batistuta · Jul 8th, 2006, 11:26

Mybe after another 100 years ,India will hopefully play in the wc.

Bigzero · Jul 8th, 2006, 12:23

How many kids in school play football? how many local football clubs are there in india ( the neighbourhood variety) . How many grass-root level football tournaments exist? How many schools have football coaches? how many football academies are there? How many state-level & district level talent scouts are there?

There could be positive answers to some of these in two or three states i guess. I hope states like Punjab, Haryana pick up an interest in the sport as well, since i guess they have traditionally done well in sports like hockey which requires a somewhat similar physical ability.

And yes, changes have to happen at the top too. Sponsors have to be sought, money has to be spent and foreign help ( read coaches ) have to come in.

my two cents..

Marvel · Jul 8th, 2006, 15:28

India is not going to do anything meaningful in any sport anytime soon. You can contrast this to China where in 2008 they could even end up beating the USA in the Olympics as top nation. The Chinese are funding their sports institutions the way they fund the military.

Meanwhile India's sports mentality is not only pathetic but they are severely underfunded and corrupt. I know this because I was interested in competing in wrestling for India and you would not even believe the kinds of hurdles I had to face from people who are supposed to be on the same side (too embarassing to even mention here).

Also the Indian obsession with cricket (which is not a sport IMHO) is having adverse effects on interest in real sports in India.

Karan321 · Jul 8th, 2006, 16:57

Maybe if a little money is routed from cricket into soccer...still its probably not going to happen in our lifetime.

Given some recent Indian performances

Lost to Nepal 3-0 in the quarterfinals of the AFC challenge cup in Bangladesh in April this year

In the Asian cup 2007 qualifiers have lost to Japan 6-0 and lost to Yemen 3-0.

They should at present concentrate on winning the South Asian Federation football tournaments.

Jul 8th, 2006, 05:48	#16
greenchutney Account Closed Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: planet earth Posts: 1,578	from a former coach...2002-2005 India falls in love with football 7 July 2006 by FIFAworldcup.com A former coach of India and Nepal, Englishman Stephen Constantine has spent the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ analysing events in Germany for the Indian television network Times Now. Constantine, a FIFA Instructor, explains the passion for football he has witnessed on his return to India, where he was in charge of the national team from 2002-2005. from this coaches website... About Stephen Constantine and India Tenure you can read his India Bio. impressive..and 'gladdening' that we beat rwanda...arent everbody fighting there...or hungry?...and we lost to bangladesh!!.. calling hiddink, scolari or eriksson would do as well...

Jul 8th, 2006, 06:53	#17
tornado989 Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Tempe, Arizona Posts: 222	I like this thread. While I agree with a lot of member opinions here, I would also like to add that unlike other nations, people's mentality of adopting or integrating "sports" in general into their lives deeply isn't as strong as say in the US or other western nations. Kids are encouraged to spend time studying more and consider sports or games as secondary time killers... (something not to be considered strongly)... IMO, when this mentality shifts a little, and with some assistance from the government and other state agencies, sports clubs, associations, India as a nation can get big into other physical sports like soccer. Note I say, get big... India already has teams in field hockey, tennis, soccer, wrestling but they are not properly funded or dont have adequate resources to grow. Only a shift of cultural mentality wld help the situation progress orrr if people are reluctant to switch.. then I am afraid... it's just cricket that we wld be watching/following and raving about... eventhough the cricket administration of India is a joke! peace __________________ Before you criticize a man, walk a mile in his shoes. That way, if he gets angry, he's a mile away and barefoot.

Jul 8th, 2006, 12:23	#20
Bigzero back to my old ways Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 1,462	How many kids in school play football? how many local football clubs are there in india ( the neighbourhood variety) . How many grass-root level football tournaments exist? How many schools have football coaches? how many football academies are there? How many state-level & district level talent scouts are there? There could be positive answers to some of these in two or three states i guess. I hope states like Punjab, Haryana pick up an interest in the sport as well, since i guess they have traditionally done well in sports like hockey which requires a somewhat similar physical ability. And yes, changes have to happen at the top too. Sponsors have to be sought, money has to be spent and foreign help ( read coaches ) have to come in. my two cents.. __________________ miles to go.... Bigzero's Photo Gallery

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Jul 8th, 2006, 07:01	#18
sam371 Dreaming of India... Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: New York Posts: 377	If I had to guess, I would say 2018. They got a long way to go. Although folks in Calcutta are crazy about soccer. They even have a decent soccer league there.

Jul 8th, 2006, 11:26	#19
batistuta Maha Guru Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,729	Mybe after another 100 years ,India will hopefully play in the wc.

Jul 8th, 2006, 15:28	#21
Marvel Account Closed Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Holland Posts: 25	India is not going to do anything meaningful in any sport anytime soon. You can contrast this to China where in 2008 they could even end up beating the USA in the Olympics as top nation. The Chinese are funding their sports institutions the way they fund the military. Meanwhile India's sports mentality is not only pathetic but they are severely underfunded and corrupt. I know this because I was interested in competing in wrestling for India and you would not even believe the kinds of hurdles I had to face from people who are supposed to be on the same side (too embarassing to even mention here). Also the Indian obsession with cricket (which is not a sport IMHO) is having adverse effects on interest in real sports in India.

Jul 8th, 2006, 16:57	#22
Karan321 Senior Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Delhi Posts: 232	Maybe if a little money is routed from cricket into soccer...still its probably not going to happen in our lifetime. Given some recent Indian performances Lost to Nepal 3-0 in the quarterfinals of the AFC challenge cup in Bangladesh in April this year In the Asian cup 2007 qualifiers have lost to Japan 6-0 and lost to Yemen 3-0. They should at present concentrate on winning the South Asian Federation football tournaments.

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