Mumbai, India – For decades, India has been known as the “sleeping giant” of football. With a population of 1.4 billion, highest in the world, there is a prevailing sentiment that India is underrepresented in international football. Compared to its dominance in cricket, the country lags far behind in football and is yet to qualify for a FIFA World Cup. Despite former FIFA president Sepp Blatter optimistically declaring in 2012 that the “sleeping giant is starting to wake up,” India currently sits at 102nd in the FIFA rankings and is not ranked among the top 10 sides in Asia. Many experts argue that India is still struggling to emerge from its slumber.
According to Stephen Constantine, former head coach of the Indian men’s football team, “India is not a giant in football because they haven’t done anything on the international front for years.”
While India basked in glory in the 1950s and 1960s, clinching gold at the 1951 and 1962 Asian Games and securing a commendable fourth-place finish at the 1956 Summer Olympics, the country’s performance on the continental stage has been lackluster since then. They have failed to progress past the group stage at the Asian Cup in 1984, 2011, and 2019.
Currently, under coach Igor Stimac, India faces a tricky campaign at the Asian Cup, where the team is grouped with teams ranked above them: Australia, Syria, and Uzbekistan. The team’s fearless approach under Stimac has impressed fans, but the coach sparked controversy in November when he said, “I don’t consider the Asian Cup such an important tournament.”
India’s 26-member squad for the Asian Cup is led by their highest goal-scorer, Sunil Chhetri, and includes the same core group of players that Stimac has worked with since taking over. Pradhyum Reddy, an Indian football coach, expects fans to have high hopes for Stimac’s side at the Asian Cup but says the road to results will not be easy.
In the lead-up to the Asian Cup, India won three tournaments in 2023, but aside from Kyrgyzstan, all opponents that India faced across the three tournaments are ranked below them. This highlights India’s tendency to play against weaker-ranked opponents, a longstanding concern.
The poor quality of coaching at various levels, absence of a robust league, and a lack of game time for players have hampered the progress of domestic football. Many experts believe that the only way for India to dream of playing at the World Cup is by consistently performing at major youth tournaments.
Overall, India’s football awakening is a slow and ongoing struggle, and the country still has a long way to go before it can compete at the highest level of international football.