1.
Indiahas beenlongbeingtermedasthe “SleepingGiantof WorldFootball”.Peopleingeneral and
punditsinparticularhave differenttheoriesbehindthis.Butthe biggestbane hasbeenthe lackof proper
grass-rootdevelopmentinthe country,itisnot justabout conductingfootball schoolsandfootball
camps itis far bigger.All the super-powersof worldfootballputsthe biggestemphasize ongrass-root
developmentprogramandnurturingof talentsfroma tenderage.
The game has developedbyleapsand boundsinthe lasttwodecadessoonlysheertalentisnotthe only
criteriathoughitis the mostimportant.Sportsscience andnutritionplaysaveryimportantpart in
today’ssports.
Thisleadsus tothe curiouscase of Bengal Football whichtillrecentlywasthe “Mecca of Indian
Football”.UnfortunatelyBengal Football hardlyproducesthe talentandnational teamplayerstheyuse
to produce regularlyevenacouple of decadesback.
Is itbecause of lack of talentand enthusiasmtowardsthe game?
Goingby the performance of the Bengal U 15 team inthe on-goingNationalswhere theyhave produced
sublime anddominatingdisplaysinall theirmatchescappingitupwitha blisteringperformance against
Goa to downtheirrivalsbya marginof 7-1 in a semi-final matchactuallydestroysourquestion.
Evenin the U15 PremierCupbeingheldinGoaat the momentUnitedSCand otherBengal teamsare
performingadmirably.
The biggestbane has beennurturingof talentsinBengal.The “BigThree”of Kolkatafootball hasnot
done enoughtonurture these talents.Theydoconductfootball schoolsreligiouslybutthe basicpoint
has beenlackof professionalisminall activities.,lotof factionalismandvestedinterest.
To put insome instances,Bengal till recentlyhada thrivingnurseryleagueandwithmuchfan-fare
AthleticoDe KolkatahadacquiredthatfromIFA last yearbut thisyearit has notbeenconductedatall.
Rampantage fraudand mis-managementare the primaryreasonssitedbythe state bodyandATK.
AlongwiththatI will addlackof commitmentandprofessionalismandlotsof infightinginthe state
parentbodyIFA.
For some strange reasonwithsucha vasttalentpool none of the international clubsetupacademiesor
football schoolsinBengal.Theyratherpreferrelativelylessenthusiasticfootballingcitieslike NewDelhi,
Mumbai,Pune andChennai.Are theytobe blamedfordoingthat?No,as it isbecause of the detoriating
sportingculture whichhasleadtothis.Bengal once a sportingpowerhouse inIndiaislackingbehindin
all sportsnot onlysports.
Bengal hasall the ingredientsstilltogetback lostgloryi.e.Experiencedformerfootballers,manyAFC
and FIFA licensedcoaches,passionatefanbase thoughlimitedonlytothe “BigTwo”,etc.
But some people have made abusinessoutof keepingBengal amediocare footballingstate.The
administratorsandorganisershave onlyone targetinmindtoholdonto their“ SeatOf Power”any
whichwaywithoutgivingadime of thoughtto the bettermentof footballinthe state.Manypeople give

2.
an excuse of lackof funds,lackof sponsors,corruption.Totallydisagree withthatif peoplehave the
rightplansand the right intentionsmoneywouldautomaticallyfollow assportsingeneral andfootball
in particularisthe biggestbusinessaroundthe world.
CorruptionwaseveninFIFA,ICCand BCCI,but whenitcame to the biggerinterestof the game they
were all unitedtoputup a great show.The state bodyIFA hasfailedtoorganise anyof the age-level
tournaments ina properprofessional mannerjustdue tofactionalismandinfighting.The nursery
league,the universitylevel tournaments,the districttournamentsare eitherdefunctorintatters.The
U19 IFA Shieldwhichisone of the oldesttournamentinthe world isinshambleswithtotal logisticsand
organistaional failure.
Mohun Bagan ACstartedtheiracademyMBSA some yearsback and itwas a huge successinitiallybut
for the lastcouple of yearsits future isuncertainwithnotalentscomingupandinfrastructure intatters.
East Bengal has launchedanacademywithmuchfan-fare withaveryexperiencedcoachinthe formof
Mr. RanjanChowdhurybutunfortunatelytheyare stuckwithBidhanNagarCorporationina dispute
aboutthe ground.The state governmentstartedanacademyinKhardahwithmuch fan-fare ayearback
but nothinghasstartedthere as well.Basicallyall projectsare eitherinlimboorhalf-baked.
There are lotof small academiesbeingrunbyindividualsorgroupof individualsfromtheirownmoney
producingtalentseveryyearbuttheyare notrecognisedbythe state bodyor any otherbodyor
supportedbyanyof the corporatesso that theycan getto the nextlevel.The stake-holdersmostlyhave
neverheardof these academies.Onlyone ortwoacademiesgetthe limelightasthe administratorsof
the respective academiesare well-connected.Connectionandnetworkshouldnotbe the only
benchmarkinfootball astalentcanbe foundanywhere anditneedstobe nurturedfromanywhere.
Finally the “BigTwo” have manyfan clubsaroundthe state everyone vyingtobe the mostpassionate
supportersof football andtheirrespective clubs.Itwill be awelcome change if these fanclubscome
forwardand contribute tofootball inputtingincontributionstothe numerousacademieswhichare
findingitdifficulttorunevenafterproducingtalentsandhelpinnurturingthese talentsinsome wayor
the other.
Finally,Bengal istoofondof discussingandcontemplatingthe evilsof the societyandthe game instead
of actuallytakingstepsintryingtomake some positive changes.Ibelieve Supportersare the biggest
stake-holderinanysportsso itis the onuson the innemurablefansandsupporterstotake some
initiativeintheirownwaytoget Bengal backto where itwas.Theyshouldtake responsibilitiesaswellto
stirthe hornet’snestandmake the administrationtake noticeandgetoutof theircomfortzone.Every
football loverhassome basicresponsibilitiestowards“The Beautiful Game”whichdoesnotgetover
withjustcriticizingthe administration.Everyoneneedstobe the change thenonlythe state of football
inBengal wouldchange.