The Turf Begins To Tick for FC Goa at Tilak Maidan
Thursday 24 September 2015
Sunday 20 September 2015
ISL Franchises will have to at least wait for 5 years for financial returns |
Nita Ambani ,founder and chairpersom of \Football Sports Development |
“The eight franchises in the Indian Super league (ISL) will
have to, at least, wait till the fifth year to start getting some returns. The
ISL has paid All India Football Federation (AIFF) thirty five crores in the
first two years, thirty eight crores in the second and forty one crores now.
Almost hundred and fifty crores have been paid in the last three to four
years,” stated a top ISL source on condition of anonymity.
“It is just not FC Goa that is not being paid. All are and
that is because the AIFF needed the funds to build up infrastructure. We cannot
afford having foreign players suffer injuries due to lack of infrastructure.
That is detrimental to the sport ,’ explained the source.
“Initially, we did not think of such a huge outlay. But,
once we got the ball rolling we had to make sure that there were no slip ups.
We had to resurface a stadium and even had to pay up for the lights in Goa.
Money was spent practically all over India. I don’t think the clubs are
expecting returns at this stage from the ISL,” surmised our source.
“ Football Sports Development Limited ( FSDL) is promoted by
IMG, Reliance and Star. Money comes to FSDL and then distributed after taking
care of expenditure. ISL is a brand name for FSDL,” explained our source.
“Pune City FC has just
got land for a new stadium. Very ISL team has pledged to spend Rs two crores on
grass root football every year. Grass root development has started but we do
not expect the teams to be spending that much at this stage now. Expenditure
will materialise when we all start talking in terms of profits and losses.
Everyone is here for the money. This is no secret or CSR initiative. But, like us,
the franchises have to wait too.” acknowledged our source.
“Spending and income gross is different amongst teams. Some
teams have managed sponsors others have not been so lucky. That does mean that
sponsorship doors have been closed. Some other companies will come calling.
Like the spectators, sponsors too are watching. It is too early to ride now.
Patience is the essence,” retorted our source whilst sounding confident that
ISL will ride through to money at some point.
Thursday 17 September 2015
I League,ISL merger can be a fruitful reality if tackled realistically
Bengaluru FC have shown that getting crowds is not a problem with right commitment |
After speculations, threats and half-hearted clarifications
the cauldron is left alone. This is not time for football to simmer. With just
two weeks left for the Indian Super league to start, it is too late to expect
the cauldron to heat. When the ISL started last year, we all said let us wait
and watch. We did. And , there was plenty of contentment that football did not
need a kick to start ; that the ball just rolled on and on -as the spectators
who preferred the labyrinths of their homes – decided to come out and just love
football.
From the reports; from the contract signed by IMG Reliance
and All India Football Federation (AIFF) it is pretty clear that football in
India has a new partner in IMG Reliance. They have the money. So, they call the
shots. AIFF, for all practical purposes, is the big daddy of Indian football.
However, daddy has grown old. It is the boy growing up with affluence who is
calling the shots for daddy.
The ISL will one day merge with the I League. This will
happen one day and has to happen because the ISL is IMG-Reliance’s baby. Now
read this: “This agreement grants IMG Reliance all commercial rights to
football across all football properties controlled by AIFF including but not
limited to the national teams and all current and future professional leagues.
Such rights include media rights, sponsorship and advertising rights, licensing
and merchandising rights, franchise rights, new league rights and any other
commercial rights attached to any of these properties.”
Let us not get into the theatrics of when, what, why or by
whom. The agreement is in place and since it involves heavy players, room to
scuttle it will sound naive. All we can do is sit and wait and hope the
contract will not be extended. If football is growing it may well be. But the
sign will be when the Indian begins to enjoy playing the game.
Every ISL franchise spends in crores each year on players
and sundry other facilities. No I League team can scale such a wall. Jumping
from a few crores to plenty will be a herculean task for most – if not all- I
league teams at the moment. In many ways, the merger song starts on budget
blues.
An ISL team requires having a minimum of nine foreign
players and a maximum of eleven. Six foreign players can take the field at a
time in the maximum.
Look at the picture when it comes to the I league. Four
foreign players in the maximum and all four can take the field. Most teams do
not have four players. If they do, the majority of players are mediocre
-Bengaluru FC is the only exception. Less
spoken, the better. If the good are injured, the story turns pathetic.
The I League introduced the system of allowing only four
foreigners to play to give our boys a chance to play. The equation as of now
stands at 4 to 7. Just the reverse happens in the ISL. In the 6 to 5 swing, our
boys end up being the back benchers on the field and at the banks. Their pie
has neither cream nor sauce.
The ISL expects all franchises to spend Rs two crores a year
on grass root development. Cash incentives of even over a crore have been
offered to teams pursuing tapping and training talent. Most teams have hardly
started moving in this direction. It will take time. Some have already asked
longer time than others.
Grass root football has taken off with the I league teams.
Though not really structured, efforts are being ploughed. Results have started
showing in the North East. Bengaluru is beginning to bloom. Kolkata and Goa –
once the nerve centres of football- have joined but look pretty late then the
new comers on the block.
As long as we learn to seed the roots ingenuously, the grass
will have to wait.
ISL teams are now enjoying State support as each state has a
team and most of the teams carry the name of their state or city. The setup is
different in the I League. What happens to the supporters of East Bengal, Mohun
Bagan and Atletico de Kolkata? Which way do the supporters of FC Goa turn?
Where do the Sporting, Salgaocar and Dempo supporters look to?
Like smart cities, do we have smart teams? Will the mergers
of the two lead to more fragmentation or will it help unite?
AIFF president Praful Patel has time and again said that the
interest of the I League teams will always be kept in mind. But, it is the ISL
teams that are spending the money and bringing in the crowds. It’s money having
sway over people.
The ISL has danced to different tunes from the end of last
season till now. Babies are loved when they are born. Because babies cannot talk,
they make us think. The I League has been on the beat for many years and has us
confused. Let us not tread quickly with the ISL baby. Its second year could
well shed some light why football in India is bouncing erratically.
Tuesday 15 September 2015
FC Goa raise Base tickets To Rs 200
Tickets for the FC Goa home matches have been priced at Rs
200 , Rs 250,Rs 480,Rs 800 plus tax and the box ticket Rs 3000 plus tax. The
Rs 800 and s 3000 tickets carry and additional 15& entertainment tax and
14% sales tax. Tickets are to be available online through Book My show
according to highly placed FC Goa sources in Mumbai.
Though there appeared a bit of hesitation on pricing the
base tickets-at the time of going to press- sources informed The Goan that the
remaining prices were settled and that the tickets will “be on sale after
Ganesh Chathurti.” “One group of tickets is priced Rs 480 to avoid the tax slab
if tickets are priced at Rs 500 and above,” explained our source.
The prices of tickets last year were: Rs 100, Rs 200,Rs 500
and Rs 2,500. “The tickets had to be increased as the revenue generated last
year was just around Rs 2 crores. The Fatorda stadium seats 19,800 people.
There was little room to manoeuvre,” rationalised the FC Goa source.
“The prices of tickets may change if FC Goa reach the
semi-finals. But, the change will be marginal. The prices for the finals in
December are fixed by ISL. FC Goa will have no say in that as the finals is
organised by them, not the home team,” added our source.
FC Goa has spent around Rs 21 crores just on the players.
Another Rs 4 crores is being spent on
Zico and his back up team taking the cost overruns to over 25 crores. The
response has not been good from advertisers. We have Adidas for the moment but
that is not enough. That is why we are trying to rope in some Goan
entrepreneurs. We know the impact will not be much but something is better than
nothing at this stage,” stated our source.
“The ISL has to be paid a yearly franchise fee of Rs 12.20 crores
with 20% service tax. That comes to around 14 crores this year.” Disclosed our source, elaborating on the cost
structure the franchise has to face while bringing together the effort.
In a recently released press statement Chennaiyin FC too
declared their tickets at Rs 150, Rs 200,Rs 300,Rs 500 and Rs 2,500. Unlike the
Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Goa, the stadium in Chennai accommodates 40,000
spectators.
Meanwhile, highly placed sources in Dubai confirmed that
coach Zico will not be arriving with the team on the night of September 22.
“Zico is going to Zurich for a few days. He will return to Goa from Zurich. The
boys will be looked after by his technical team, in his absence.”
“ I know he is going for some FIFA related work. I don’t
know whether his visit has anything to do with the FIFA elections. “quipped our source in Dubai.
Wednesday 9 September 2015
FC Goa Play Safe;Victorino Sent Back After Contracting Contagious Skin Rash
FC Goa striker Victorino Fernandes has returned to Goa from pre-season training in Dubai as he
contracted a contagious skin disease. “There is nothing to worry. He was sent
back as a precautionary measure. He was checked by team Dr Sandip and then
taken to a hospital in Dubai where the diagnosis was confirmed. He was asked to
go back keeping in mind the other players,” stated an FC Goa source with the
team in Dubai.
“ Victorino will definitely recover before the first game (
October 4) . Since there was a chance that the other players may contract the
rash, it was decided to send him back. The rash is contagious. It’s been done
for the safety of the team,” read a communiqué of the team doctor.
FC Goa marquee player Lucio – who was recovering from an
injury a few months back- is hundred per cent fit. “ Lucio’s level of
engagement in training dwarfs the others . Despite his age, Lucio does exercises
better than even the younger players in the team. He is a born leader,”
asserted our source while disclaiming doubts about Lucio’s past injury woes.
FC Goa play their first practise match on September 11 the
second on either September 14 or 15 and the third and last one on September 19.
The team leaves Dubai for Goa on September 22 and is expected to land in
Dabolim airport at around 11 pm after leaving Mumbai around 10.30 pm.
FC Goa will not be playing a friendly with Mumbai City FC
who is also practising in Dubai. Mumbai City FC was keen on playing a friendly
with their Goan counterparts. “Zico did not accede to the request” stated a
Mumbai City FC official with his team.
“Players will be having a session with Indian Super League (ISL)
channel partners Star TV on September 23. Practise starts at Tilak maidan,
Vasco on September 24,” stated a senior management official associated with the
club.
“A crate of twenty four water bottles for training costs 30
Dhirams ( Rs 543 at today’s market rate). One banana costs around Rs twenty.
Things are not cheap compared to India,” stated our source. “but , the boys are
doing fine. That is not their worry,” elucidated our source.
FC Goa co-owner Dattaraj Salgaocar ,who was in Dubai with the
team, is expected to pay another visit this week along with memorabilia for the
hundreds of FC Goa fans that have been
witnessing the training so far. FC Goa chief advisor Prasun Kumar Mukherjee is also expected to be
with the team in Dubai for a few days.
Tuesday 8 September 2015
8 Goans among FC Goa's 16 Indians
Monday 7 September 2015
The Tale of Two Derbies;A Search For Answers
The packed stand in Calcutta on the left and the empty stands in Goa...Pic by Goa football Live |
BY DOMNIC PAES IN FATORDA
September 6 witnessed two of India's well known football derbies.
One took place in the East of India (Calcutta) and the other on the West of
India (Goa).
East Bengal took on Mohun Bagan at the mammoth Salt Lake stadium
in front of a huge crowd, supporting both sets of teams, while Dempo SC took on
Churchill Brothers at the tiny Duler Stadium in Mapusa , in front of empty
stands.
Although people may argue that the East Bengal v/s Mohun Bagan match has a lot of history associated with it,
there is no denying the fact that the Dempo SC v/s Churchill Brothers game used to be one of the biggest in Goa in the
early 2000's attracting at least
15000 thousand people earlier.
So, what has changed since then? Where have those fans
disappeared? What has GFA done to rectify this anomaly? Where is that passion
for football that Goan’s talk (rather brag) about? A lot of questions, that
have very few satisfactory answers.
Goan’s have always been susegad, yet they came for
matches earlier- in large numbers- but nowadays teams are unable to sell even
100 tickets. A common answer most people give is that, the quality of football
is poor. But, then, the quality is almost same in Kolkata. Yet, they get a much
better crowd.
So who has better passion for football? Just sitting on a
couch and talking about having passion for football is stupid. And most Goan’s
are guilty of bragging about this unfounded passion that has suddenly gone
missing.
The topic of FC Goa will definitely crop up and people will
say that they manage a full house. But that is the case in other parts of India
as well just because of the promotion. This is where the Goa Football
Association comes into picture and should take the major blame for this
debacle. Having all GPL matches at one stadium is utter foolishness. The rains
have gone missing so there is no question of water logging at the smaller
grounds. Why are teams from South Goa playing at Duler, Mapusa?. Let the South based
teams (Churchill, Cavelossim, Curtorim,Guardian Angel) play at either Raia or
Cuncolim or Trinity ground. Its much better to have 1000 people in a small
village stadium than having 10 people at Duler Stadium. Secondly the marketing
of GPL by the GFA has been almost non- existent. Why is it that the Kolkata
league can get telecast on TV and the Goa League organisers cannot even give
live updates?
Goan football in on its death bed and needs radical changes
to survive. The fact that there is not a single Goan in the India U-19 team and
other age group teams, itself should ring the alarm bells for Goan football. A
state that contributed almost half of the Indian team a few years ago, can’t
even have 2 players in the starting eleven in recent matches.
Constructive discussion on this topic will be highly
appreciated. Even officials in the know are free to clarify certain points if
they feel are not appropriate.
Viva Goa !
(The views of the writer are published because they reflect the anguish of true Goan football fans-Editor)
Sunday 6 September 2015
Friends Can Prepare the Best Pitch For Cricket in Goa
Friday 4 September 2015
Grass roots is not a numbers game,it's understanding moral policing in sports
Some youngsters in Anjuna displayed amazing talent |
Last weekend was spent in Anjuna watching a football final
of under-16 school boy’s .The atmosphere was electric. Mothers, fathers,
brothers and sisters were all there. The villagers were there too. When the
ball was directed towards goal, there were cheers. In many ways, it looked like a mini ISL was at play in a village without the reliance frills. The
feeling was romantic away from the glare of the media.
The evening was not
about the style of football played. It was about the talent on display and
there was quite a bit of it. The young boys could shoot. The passing was
inherent. They could position themselves for the ball and they could shoot
intelligently. Skill was evident.
As the referee blew the final whistle, the topic was not
about the winners or losers. It was about the talent on display. Unfortunately,
there were no scouts for the match. That is where the conversation veered long
after the prizes were distributed and the triumphed and defeated trooped off
home.
There is lot of talk about grass roots today. Somehow, grass
roots will not be understood until we learn to embrace all aspects of grass
roots. The main being scouting. More importantly, moral policing. Honest people
are needed if we want the game to grow. This is exactly what we lack.
Moral policing, in other words, is about honesty-needing
honest people. Because, unless we have honest people, the talented will not
succeed. They will be trampled by the less talented or even those not at all
talented and in this way football will always stay behind. We will then begin
to understand why India cannot defeat Nepal.
Tournaments for children are good. They are essential. The
more, the merrier. Somehow, this has not gone into the brain width of many. The
Higher Secondary School League was started last year by the Directorate of
Sports and Youth Affairs (DSYA). Many people applauded the initiative. Most
importantly, it was appreciated by the higher secondary students who found it
to be a window to not play but perform.
For those of us who followed the HSS League, there was
plenty to watch, appreciate and even imbibe. Some of the boys and girls could
have surely been somewhere in this football world had their potential not only
been documented but harnessed properly. Nothing really came of it because once
again there were no scouts present for any of the matches played around in Goa.
Unfortunately, that shame continues even now.
To make matters worse, the HSS league –as it was called last
year- has been cancelled this year by the present DSYA director. The excuses
were lame, reaching the point of filth. What is good for sport cannot be
condoned on flimsy grounds whetted by flimsier people. The league was for the
HSS students and if they were happy the league should have stayed.
There have been many people in Goa who have pretended to
love football. Actually they do not love the sport for the physical or
intellectual thrill it provides. They are in it because they look at football
as a platform to grow themselves in society. Some people have tried this hard
and have been kicked out of the game equally hard. In short, every dog has his
day.
We can have not one
but even forty grass roots centres. We may have four thousand or even five
thousand children in our programmes (GFDC inflates its numbers in the hope of
impressing Manohar Parrikar). Numbers do not really matter. What matters is –
do we have the scouts to differentiate the chaff from the sheaf?
No. Goa does not. Something has to be done to rectify this
anomaly. Or else, we will be running in circles, spending government money and
finishing this football experiment as a political circus.
Actually, football is entwined in political circles in Goa. Let
us discuss this later.
Coming back to scouts, I think Goa is capable of having
quite a few good scouts. Severino is a name that comes to mind immediately.
Severino has been training many teams in Goa. In fact he has been coaching
quite a few teams successfully. But, more importantly he has been through these
years been silently scouting talent and supplying them to many teams. He is the
feeder of players to teams lacking funds. The boys he supplies do not add up as
numbers. They play good entertaining football. Most are players spotted by
Severino.
Goa needs more Severino’s. People like him need to be
respected. He may be hardly known in Goa but he could well have been a star
talent scout abroad. This is our sad story. We look yonder when actually we
have it within us. We can pay a foreigner easily but shrug when it comes to
paying our own.
This is the difference and this difference can be changed
only by us.
Tuesday 1 September 2015
GFA Pro League matches clash with ISL
Four Goa Football Association (GFA) Goa Professional League
matches clash with FC Goa’s Indian Super league (ISL) home matches. If FC Goa reaches
the semi-finals, the home semi-final will also clash along with the final
scheduled for December 20.
The Indian Super league (ISL) schedule was declared on May
29 and Goa Football Association
declared the Goa Professional League draw on July 11. The GFA had more
than a month to make sure the two schedules did not clash. However, the fans
have been ignored.
FC Goa starts their ISL campaign on October 4 with a game
against Delhi Dynamos. Brazilian Lucio will be on one side and Roberto Carlos
on the other- two great Brazilian defenders with a class of their own. Yet on
that day, Dempo Sports Club is scheduled to play Calangute Association at Duler
grounds, Mapusa at 4pm.
October 7 will see FC Goa cross swords with ISL champions
Atletico de Kolkata. GFA has scheduled a sort of a derby match of the Goa
Professional League between Salgaocar FC and Sporting Clube de Goa on the same
day. The ISL has two arch states-Goa and Kolkata fighting for supremacy.
Goa FC face Kerala Blasters on October 22, the same day Goa’s
derby between Salgaocar FC and Dempo Sports Club takes place at Duler. Sporting Clube de Goa who has already lost
0-3 to Churchill Brother Sports club in their away match face them again on
November 25- the day FC Goa play their last home match against North East
United FC.
If FC Goa reaches the semi-finals, the match will against
clash with a GFA Pro League match as the entire dates clash with ISL
semi-finals dates. Guardian Angel SC play Curtorim Gymkhana in Raia on the day
the ISL final is scheduled in Goa on December 20.
The GFA Pro League schedule is done by the Competition
Committee headed by Vice President (South) Schubert Furtado.
Incidentally, at the GFA Annual General Meeting (AGM ) had
recently , a handful of members had
thought of writing to FC Goa asking for a financial contribution as it is
starved for cash. “ The idea was moved by a member to ask FC Goa asking for a
part or one match gate collection contribution or for a donation for the teams
registration as has been done by Kerala
blasters,” stated GFA Vice President (North) Lavinio Pereira.
“How can something like that be done?
Shrinivas has done a lot for football when he was president and is still
spending a lot for the game. The ISL is still not paying back the investors. If
Shrinivas thinks GFA needs the money he will himself give. We do not need to
ask him,” added Lavinio.
With the clash in schedules it is going to be the fan that
will lose. In the long term , football too.
Salgaocar's Duffy , Last Foreign Recruit To Sign For FC Goa
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