India to bid for Under-20 World Cup

 

Encouraged by the renewed interest in football generated by the success of the ISL, India will consider bidding for either the 2019 or the 2021 editions of the under-20 World Cup, revealed the All India Football Federation general secretary Kushal Das.

India will host the under-17 World Cup in 2017, and the AIFF will seek to continue with its grassroots development schemes by giving the junior players another top-level youth tournament.

“We have the infrastructure in place for the under-17 World Cup, and there is a group of very talented footballers who we are getting ready for the tournament. Naturally, the next step will be to bid for the under-20 World Cup and sustain the momentum of development,” said Das, as the AIFF launched a fresh edition of the I-League, which will begin on January 9.

The junior boys, training under German coach Nicolai Adam in the AIFF academy, have the potential to be the future game changers, he said.

“They will be going on a series of exposure trips, starting with South Africa. And I expect them to play in leagues in Europe and Latin America in future,” Das said. He said he expected the Indian boys to earn qualification for the under-17 World Cup on merit when India hosts the AFC Asian qualifiers and not utilise the berth reserved for the host country.

“The ISL has had a very positive rub-off on football in general in the country. The I-League has definitely benefited from the success of this new initiative,” Das said.

“The I-league last year was one of the most competitive editions. This definitely was due to the positive influence of the ISL, and I think the I-League will be more successful this year.” Despite the pull-out of the teams like Pune FC and Bharat FC, which has made the country’s only FIFA recognised club football league a nine-team affair this season, Das said there was still a lot to look out for.

“Overall, the Indian picture is quite bright as the investment factor has trebled in the last couple of seasons since the introduction of the ISL. And with 17 club team in business, between the ISL and the I-League, we can always have a unified league in future,” Das said, adding that technicalities would need to be sorted out before the unification in the “neat future”.