Tuesday, April 17, 2007

FIFA Turns It's (One Good) Eye Towards India

Soccer in India is quite the conundrum. You've got a billion people, many excited to sit down and watch the EPL or La Liga on TV, but not too many excited about the local game. While Sepp Blatter jets around the country looking to pump up soccer's image, he knows that he's got an uphill battle in front of him:
Blatter said soccer's future was in Asia since Europe was "saturated for foreign players and coaches." But before that, the situation on the ground needs to change. "Good coaches will come to India if a good technical and administrative infrastructure is in place," he said.

Asian Football Confederation chief Mohammed bin Hammam, who is traveling with Blatter, was slightly more pointed in his criticism of the Indian scene. "With the existing structure, don't think of progress even in the next 100 years," Hammam was quoted as saying.
100 years? Just award India the World Cup, it worked for the United States.

Selling Soccer In India [Forbes]

-ac

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