A comprehensive plan for the expansion of the national game over the next 25 years was presented by Kalyan Chaubey, president of the All India Football Federation, and Shaji Prabhakar, secretary general.
On Saturday, four months after taking over, Shaji Prabhakaran and Kalyan Chaubey, president of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), presented a plan for Indian football.
Indian football has the potential to become a dominant force in Asia by the time India turns 100, according to the 94-slide “Vision 2047” presentation. Reaching the top four in Asia, establishing one of the continent’s top three leagues, and producing a star player in both men’s and women’s games are among the objectives.
Among the 11 core areas that the federation identified, each of which represents the number of players on a football field, the term “Talent Identification and Development” received the most attention. The AIFF claims that former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will personally devote time to developing a data-driven national team scouting system.
Before departing for India, Wenger has already assigned tasks to his players. We will be able to begin the Talent Development Scheme in India by February, which will assist us in finding additional players. We are going to work on this project with FIFA’s support. “We will be scouting players on a scientific basis,” Prabhakaran stated during a meeting with the media in this location.
Wenger led Arsenal to three Premier League titles between 1996 and 2018. He now serves as the Chief of Global Football Development for FIFA. The next month, the AIFF’s administrators promised to provide additional information regarding Wenger’s involvement.
Prabhakaran went on to describe their strategy’s data-driven nature: The data-driven strategy addresses numerous issues. It won’t be limited to players only. Every aspect of football will be affected. As a result, we will be able to select the best option. Data implies objectivity. We do not, however, currently have the data. The appropriate structure needs to be established before the data can be accessed by anyone.
The AIFF procedure has been broken up into six strategic plans for the past four years. From now until 2026, the first cycle will be in effect.
After defeating Bhaichung Bhutto to become president, Chaubey emphasized the significance of developing a national football philosophy in September.
“Instead of playing the way a foreign coach tells us to, whether they are from Croatia, Brazil, or England, and changing our style, we need to have our own philosophy. Climate, average weight, and physical characteristics are unique to each of us. We are behind Europeans and Africans. “We need to understand what we can do with the players that we have,” Chaubey, a former goalkeeper, stated.
More jobs are needed than just in a few states. The three states of Kerala, Bengal, and Goa are home to the majority of the national team’s players. That shouldn’t be the case. Football is played everywhere in India. He added that more international athletes were needed.
It is noteworthy that the new panel declined India’s request to host the AFC Asian Cup in 2027. It seems to be a departure from the previous administration, which was led by Praful Patel and tried to hold marquee events. India will host the U-17 men’s and women’s World Cups in 2017 and 2022, respectively. Prabhakaran claims that if they had hosted the continental event, they would not have been able to accomplish their objectives.
We don’t want to think about it. However, the primary objective of our strategy is not to host such an event. It conforms to our strategy. We have not yet discussed holding large gatherings. Prabhakaran suggested that we look into it later.