1st season of ISL: The Sleeping Giants of football has finally moved!

Some 68 days and 128 goals later, the first season of the Indian Super League finally drew curtains.

Athletico De Kolkata became the first champion, who beat Kerala Blasters 1-0 in the final. So, with so much glamour that was associated with the ISL, do you think it was able to deliver the same amount of impact on the pitch? Was it able to garner as much attention as that of the IPL? Will it be able to take Indian football a long way forward? And can India, now dream of playing in the FIFA World Cup sometime in the future?

So many questions. So many queries. So many expectations. And all of it associated with the Indian Super League. Yes, the league that was tainted as the start of a football revolution in our country. The league that many believed would be able to wake up the ‘Sleeping Giants of World Football’. The league, which sums up as the benchmark for developing Indian football. With an average attendance of roughly around 25,000 and 4th in the list of average attendance in football leagues around the world, behind only Bundesliga, English Premier League and the La Liga, ISL was surely a big hit. With the likes of Del Pierro, Capedevilla and Materazzi, to name a few, who shared the football pitch with Indian counterparts and the likes of Zico and Ricki Herbert, amongst the managerial department, the Indian Super League sure brought in some of the greats of football to India. Football fans like me, who grew up watching the English Premier League, never dreamt of such a venture in our own country. Watching European football was the only way to replenish the hunger for competitive and quality football. But thanks to IMG-Reliance, I could very much enjoy football played in our own country. And in a glamorous way. But the main question still remains. Will it help develop Indian football so that one day we can cherish upon the sight of an Indian football team playing in the FIFA World Cup?

The main thing is that it should have indulged as many young Indian footballers as they could have. The number of Indian youngsters that were involved was a fair amount but the number should be more in the subsequent seasons. The first season saw many youngsters get a shot at glamorous and quality football, alongside experienced players from other footballing nations. And sharing the space with some of the great footballers helped the cause too. Another thing which should have been taken into account was to involve all the players of the Indian national team in the league. If you really want to help Indian football, then every national team player should have been considered for the league. But with captain, Sunil Chettri himself not being part of the ISL, it was as if a main component of the Indian national team was missing from the glamorous league. If Indian football really needs sheer development, then national team players should get involved in the league. And by playing competitive football, the players would get the much-required exposure.

Let every Indian footballer get involved in the ISL, from the coming seasons. This will ensure more footballers to be prepared to play International football, and in this way, quality footballers would be able to don the Indian football team jersey. I do hope to get to see the Indian football team playing in the FIFA World Cup in the very near future. Let’s hope this is just the beginning of football in India. There’s more to come in the upcoming seasons. Let football grow to become the most popular sport in our country. Let’s hope and let’s pray. Come on India, let’s football.