Written by nigelempson, this article raises some questions about the proposed IPL style Indian Football league.
It has been argued that the IPL was good for cricket so therefore it will be good for football. This is a very simplistic view which ignores the fundamental differences between the two.
It has been argued that the IPL was good for cricket so therefore it will be good for football. This is a very simplistic view which ignores the fundamental differences between the two.
Firstly, you’re not getting the world’s top
players – they’re busy playing for the world’s top clubs. Neymar, Ronaldo,
Messi, Rooney, Suarez, van Persie, Aguero, Balotelli, Ibrahimovic…they won’t be
there. Instead you will get ‘marque’ players who used to be great in days past
but who have now retired: players who will pull their boots on one more time to
pick up a nice cheque, thank you very much, before going back to retirement.
You can add to these, players who either can’t find a club or who are not
needed by their existing club.
Secondly, at the time of writing, you’re not going to see the best
Indian players either – they’re almost all signed up for I-League clubs. What
you’ll have is a few stars and a lot of players who are I-League 2 level or
below. The difference in quality and experience between the imports and the
Indians is immense – how are you going to weld these guys together in to a team
when the quality is so variable?
IMG-R has said that the quality of the Indian
players isn’t important, because nobody is coming to see them. If this is the
case how does this benefit Indian football? Surely all it will do is make the
European game more popular still?
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