Once again, Indian football has taken a few strides back after one step forward
Head coach Igor Stimac was sacked after the team failed to make it to the third round of the World Cup qualifiers. But he is not the only one at fault.
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This article originally appeared in The Field’s newsletter, Game Points, on June 19, 2024. Sign up here to get the newsletter directly delivered to your inbox every week.
Things were looking up for the Indian men’s football team this time last year. Under head coach Igor Stimac, India had won the Tri-Nation series, the Intercontinental Cup and were preparing for the SAFF Championship, which they would go on to win.
A couple of weeks on from their SAFF Championship triumph in July 2023, India received a favourable draw in the second round of the 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifiers.
In Group A, they were drawn with heavyweights Qatar and the lower-ranked Afghanistan and Kuwait. On paper, they were favourites to qualify for the third round – for the first time. And with the quality of players at their disposal, they should have made it to the next round.
What transpired was an utter disgrace.
India won only one of their six group matches and were knocked out of the World Cup qualifiers. The low point came in March when a depleted Afghanistan side held India to a draw, before beating the Indians 2-1 in the return fixture in Guwahati.
On Monday, the All India Football Federation, the governing body for the sport in the country, sacked Stimac from his role. When...
