47-575: The Indian Super Cup was Indian football 's annual match contested between the champions of the previous National Football League or I-League season and the holders of the Federation Cup , usually held at a neutral venue. If the League champions also won the Federation Cup then the league runners-up would provide the opposition. The fixture was usually considered the curtain raiser to
94-520: A 2–1 defeat, with Sarangapani Raman scoring the lone goal for India. India then returned to the Olympics four years later where they took on Yugoslavia in the preliminary rounds. The team suffered a 10–1 defeat, India's largest margin of defeat in a competitive match, and were knocked out. Four years later, during the 1956 Olympics, India managed to reach the semi-finals and finish fourth. After India's first round opponents, Hungary , withdrew from
141-614: Is affiliated with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the worldwide football governing body FIFA . The India national football team has entered the regional Asian Cup competition but has never competed in a World Cup . The India women's national football team has also played in competitions, and has its own inter-state and state competitions. Youth football is administered by the Sports Authority of India . The India national football team
188-665: Is governed by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and is a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Since 1948, the AIFF has been affiliated with FIFA , the international governing body for world football. In 1954, the AIFF became one of the founding members of the AFC. The following list includes the performance of all of India's national teams at major competitions. The Indian senior national team had several successes during their initial years but
235-573: Is no longer considered one of the best in Asia. The national team's highest achievement is winning two gold medals at the Asian Games. The women's national team was started in the 1970s; they were twice runners-up in the Women's Asian Cup in the early 1980s. After the AIFF took charge of the team, they began to suffer massive defeats and declined in the late 2000s. In the late 2010s, the AIFF revived
282-429: Is now. 1951–1962 is widely considered the "golden age" of Indian football. In this period, the national team won numerous titles under the coaching of Syed Abdul Rahim . India won the gold medal in the first Asian Games in 1951 , beating Iran by one goal. In 1956, no longer playing barefoot, India reached the semi-final in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics , becoming the first Asian country to do so and ranking fourth in
329-496: Is one of the most popular sports in India . The 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the first FIFA event the country hosted. It was called the most successful FIFA U-17 World Cup ever, with a record-breaking attendance of 1,347,133, exceeding China 's record of 1,230,976 from 1985. India also hosted the 2022 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup and bid to host the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup . The Indian national football team qualified for
376-455: Is the first time ever India qualified consecutively for the continental championship. India competed in four straight Olympic football tournaments between 1948 and 1960. Their sole 1948 Olympics match against France was also India's first ever international match since the country gained independence in 1947. During the match, a majority of the Indian side played barefoot. The match ended in
423-917: Is the organisation that administers football in the Indian state of West Bengal . It is the oldest football association in India and was founded in 1893. Among the founders was former English international Elphinstone Jackson . The IFA organises tournaments such as the Calcutta Football League , the Calcutta Women's Football League and the IFA Shield . In 2021, the IFA also took an initiative to start its own futsal league. It also sends state teams for Santosh Trophy and Senior Women's National Football Championship . Contrary to
470-506: Is the top league, followed by I-League , I-League 2 and I-League 3 . I-League 3 currently acts as a final round for the top teams in the state leagues that are nominated by state football associations . India has several cup tournaments, including the Durand Cup , Super Cup and IFA Shield . The competitions currently active in Indian football in the 2023–24 season . The competitions currently active in Indian football in
517-638: The 1950 FIFA World Cup but did not participate. British soldiers introduced football into India in the mid-nineteenth century. Games were initially played between army teams but clubs were soon set up around the country. In 1872, Calcutta FC was the first football club to be established, though the side may have originated as a rugby club that switched codes as late as 1894. Other early clubs include Dalhousie AC , Traders Club and Naval Volunteers Club. Several other football clubs such as Sovabazar, Mohun Bagan and Aryan Club were established in Calcutta in
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#1732786920398564-473: The 2015 edition . India beat Thailand by 4–1, their biggest-ever win at the Asia Cup and their first win in 55 years. Nevertheless, they lost both of their next two group matches against UAE and Bahrain by 0−2 and 0−1 respectively and finished at the bottom of the group, thus failing to move to the knockout stage. Football in India is administered by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) , which
611-858: The 2023–24 season . As of 2023 , few of India's national football stadiums meet current world standards. The largest football stadiums in India are the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata with a seating capacity of 68,000 and the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi with a capacity of over 60,000. The Barabati Stadium in Cuttack and Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar are major arenas for football events in Odisha . In Sikkim,
658-611: The COTIF cup, as well as Iraq U-16 , the defending champions of the AFC U-16 Championship (now the AFC U-17 Championship), by 1–0. The U-16 team qualified for the 2018 AFC U-16 Championship , where they came close to qualifying for the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup , but lost to South Korea by a single goal in the quarterfinal. The Indian national team qualified for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup after missing
705-612: The FIFA U-17 World Cup in front of 47,000 people against the United States, losing the match 0–3. India played their second match against Colombia. In the 82nd minute, Jeakson Singh became the first Indian goal scorer in the finals of a FIFA-organised tournament. For the third match of the group stage, India played Ghana, losing the match 4–0 and finishing at the bottom of Group A. In 2018 Indian youth football teams made history by defeating Argentina U-20 2–1 in
752-1000: The Fatorda Stadium in Goa , the Kaloor International Stadium in Kochi , the Municipal Corporation Stadium in Kozhikode , the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Guwahati and the EKA Arena in Ahmedabad . There are hundreds of other stadiums in the country. The following stadiums are affiliated by All India Football Federation . Note. † denotes stadiums that have hosted international football matches. The Nehru Cup
799-652: The Trades Cup , the Gladstone Cup, the Cooch Behar Cup and the coveted IFA Shield , prior to the incorporation of Calcutta Football League in 1898. The Trades Cup is the oldest tournament in Kolkata, being instituted in 1889. Clubs outside Bengal complained about the lack of neutrality in the affairs of the IFA. This disillusionment of clubs and patrons led to the formation of associations such as
846-545: The 1890s. Calcutta was then the capital of British India and soon became the hub of football. Tournaments like the Gladstone Cup , the Trades Cup and the Cooch Behar Cup were started around this time. The Durand Cup and IFA Shield were both started in the late nineteenth century. The first Indian team to achieve success was Sovabazar Club, which won the Trades Cup in 1892. Mohun Bagan Athletic Club , which
893-658: The 1950 FIFA World Cup, India did not enter the qualifying rounds of the tournament between 1954 and 1982 . Since the 1986 qualifiers , with the exception of the 1990 edition of the tournament, the team participated in World Cup qualification, but has yet to qualify for the finals again. India has qualified for the AFC Asian Cup five times. The team played their first Asian Cup in 1964 . The team managed to qualify following other nations' refusal to play against India due to political reasons. India managed to finish
940-614: The 1990s, the women's team rapidly declined and a series of defeats followed. In 2009, FIFA delisted the Indian women's team from the world rankings. In August 2007, the Indian national team won the Nehru Cup for the first time, beating Syria 1–0. In August of the following year, India defeated Tajikistan 4–1 to win the AFC Challenge Cup and qualified for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. In August 2009, India again won
987-992: The 30,000-capacity Paljor Stadium in Gangtok is famous as one of the most beautiful stadiums in the world because of its backdrop of the Himalayas. The main stadium in Shillong is the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium with a capacity of 30,000 standing. Both the Paljor and the JLN in Shillong have been renovated with artificial playing surfaces . Some other important stadiums are the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune , Barasat Stadium in Barasat ,
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#17327869203981034-533: The All India Football Federation. [REDACTED] International football in India generally takes place between September and November according to FIFA men's match calendar, and between February-July/October-December for women. The Indian national football team has also provided some of the greatest players, the example of which is Sunil Chhetri . As of 2023 , India has four national-level leagues. The Indian Super League
1081-704: The IFA and also foreign teams negotiated with the IFA for visits to India. In its formative years, the only Indian representative in the English dominated executive committee was Kalicharan Mitra from the Sovabazar Club. By vigorously promoting the game in Bengal , the IFA became undivided India's premier football body in the early decades of the 20th century. Through the efforts of Nagendra Prasad Sarbadhikari (the father of Indian football ), A.R. Brown and B.C. Lindsay of Dalhousie AC , and Watson of Calcutta FC ,
1128-536: The IFA was established in 1893. A.R. Brown was the first Secretary of the IFA. Norman Prichard , the first Indian to win an Olympic medal , was the Secretary of the IFA in 1900.The most remarkable person to head the IFA was the Maharaja of Santosh , Sir M.N. Roy Chowdhury. During his tenure the IFA played an instrumental role in the formation of the AIFF. The IFA had organised many historical tournaments like
1175-524: The Indian football domestic season. The fixture was last contested in 2011 when East Bengal won the cup for the third time, defeating Salgaocar 9–8 on penalties. The Indian Super Cup was started in 1997 by the All India Football Federation as a playoff between the then National Football League champions and Federation Cup holders. The first edition took place that year between the 1996–97 NFL (first season in league history) champions JCT Mills and 1996 Federation Cup holders East Bengal . After
1222-477: The Indian team in the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers. After going first in their AFC Challenge Cup group, Houghton was replaced by Wim Koevermans . The India national under-23 football team won the first round of the 2012 Olympics qualifiers against Myanmar but were eliminated by Qatar. India played their next official matches against United Arab Emirates in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, which India lost on aggregate 5–2. In 2014, India hosted
1269-544: The Indian team was a special one as they became the first ever Asian Games gold medalists in football. Though the next two tournaments proved to be less successful for the team, they bounced back by winning gold at the 1962 Asian games by defeating the Asian Cup winners South Korea. The team failed to defend their title in 1966 and went on to claim the bronze medal in 1970 . Indian Football Association The Indian Football Association , abbreviated as IFA ,
1316-476: The Nehru Cup, beating Syria on penalties (6–5). In January 2011, India played in the 2011 Asian Cup , the country's first Asian Cup for 24 years. India was eliminated in the group stage, which included South Korea , Australia , and Bahrain . Since the 2011 Asian Cup, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has been working to improve Indian football. They allowed former coach Bob Houghton to coach
1363-473: The World Cup. The AIFF had organised training is Calcutta for the 1950 World Cup and the board organised a series of meetings relating to India's participation but was not able to reach a decision. One to two weeks before the World Cup, the AIFF resorted to coming up with excuses to abandon the World Cup trip. This did not face much criticism in 1948 because the FIFA World Cup was not as popular as it
1410-415: The early 1960s caused the Indian national team to gradually lose their position as a top Asian team. India has not qualified for the Olympics since 1960. India qualified for their first Asian Cup in 1964 but failed to win the title. In an international tournament at the 1970 Asian Games, India won the bronze medal after defeating Japan 1–0. The Indian national team qualified for the 1984 AFC Asian Cup for
1457-493: The expenses required in getting the team to Brazil . But this reason was untrue because FIFA was ready to give money to India (AIFF) for their trip to Brazil. Other reasons cited for why India withdrew include FIFA not allowing Indian players to play in the tournament barefoot and the All India Football Federation not considering the FIFA World Cup an important tournament compared to the Olympics . After withdrawing from
Indian Super Cup (1997–2011) - Misplaced Pages Continue
1504-504: The financial barrier was solved as state associations provided financial help to the AIFF and that FIFA also promised to provide money. FIFA had imposed a rule banning barefoot play following the 1948 Olympics where India had played barefoot. According to then-captain Shailen Manna , this story was circulated to justify the AIFF's decision to not participate. Since 1950, the Indian national team has not come close to qualifying for
1551-513: The first Unity World Cup in Goa , Hyderabad and Bangalore . India has participated in and hosted the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup tournament. This was the first time a team representing India participated in the finals of a FIFA-organised world tournament. India was placed in Group A along with the United States , Ghana and Colombia . On 6 October 2017, India played their first match in
1598-588: The first Indian to appear with the English Football League club Arsenal in 1930. India qualified by default for the 1950 FIFA World Cup in Brazil because all of their scheduled opponents withdrew. India did not compete in the tournament. It was not because of a lack of financial assistance, particularly to purchase tickets for the sea journey, or because the team were not allowed to play barefoot. According to sports journalist Jaydeep Basu ,
1645-627: The first time since 1964 but failed to qualify for the knockout stage after finishing last in their group of five teams. The Indian youth team jointly won the Youth Asian Cup with Iran in 1974 , the first and only title for India at the youth level. In club football, on 24 September 1977, Mohun Bagan held onto a 2–2 draw at the Eden Gardens stadium in Calcutta, against a Pelé -led New York Cosmos . Mohun Bagan would have won
1692-432: The group in last place, drawing once. India have since failed to qualify for another Olympic games. India competed in eleven Asian Games, starting from 1951 to 1998 , except the 1990 and 1994 editions. In 1951 Asian Games India won their first match against Indonesia in the first round and then defeated Japan in semi-final and went on to win against Iran in the final in front of the home crowd. The achievement of
1739-596: The match ended 0–0, East Bengal won the first Super Cup on penalties 4–2. Salgaocar proceeded to win the next two editions of the Super Cup before the tournament was suspended for three seasons. When the cup returned in 2003 Mahindra United defeated East Bengal on penalties 4–3 after drawing them 1–1. The cup was then held seven more times before being suspended and hasn't been played since the 2011 fixture . Football in India Association football
1786-507: The name, the association does not administer the game in India, a task that falls to the All India Football Federation (AIFF), instead governs the game in the state of West Bengal . However, before the formation of the AIFF, the IFA was in de facto control of football in India by virtue of its administration by Englishmen as well as its affiliation to the Football Association . Hence, all foreign tours were conducted by
1833-424: The team to empower women's football and the team performed well in a large number of friendlies. The AIFF won the hosting bid for the 2022 AFC Women's Asian Cup . Includes U-19 and U-18 teams' performance. Includes U-16 and U-15 teams' performance. Includes U-19 and U-18 teams' performance. Includes U-16 and U-15 teams' performance. There are currently 36 state associations and 2 affiliates associations with
1880-488: The tie had it not been for a controversial penalty awarded to the visiting team that ensured the draw. The next day, the newspaper Ananda Bazar Patrika described Goutam Sarkar as "India's very own Beckenbaur". The Indian women's team as they began playing in the 1970s. In 1975, their first manager was Sushil Bhattacharya . The Indian women's team were runners-up in the AFC Women's Asian Cup in 1980 and 1983 . In
1927-496: The tournament as runners-up to hosts Israel , with Inder Singh finishing as joint top-scorer. Since then, India has failed to progress beyond the first round of the Asian Cup, with their participation at the 1984 and 2011 Asian Cups, and most recently the 2019 Asian Cup . In June 2022, India qualified for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup after winning all the matches in the third round of 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification . This
Indian Super Cup (1997–2011) - Misplaced Pages Continue
1974-431: The tournament, the team played against hosts Australia in the quarter-finals. A Neville D'Souza hat-trick, the first by an Asian footballer in the Olympics, helped India win 4–2. However, in the semi-finals, India once again suffered defeat against Yugoslavia, going down 4–1. In the bronze medal match, India were defeated 3–0 by Bulgaria . In 1960, India competed in Group D with Hungary, France and Peru . India ended
2021-671: The tournament. In 1962, India again won the gold in the Asian Games at Jakarta , defeating South Korea 2–1. India also won the Merdeka Cup and the Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament , while East Bengal garnered good reviews after touring Romania. Also in 1951, India achieved their highest World Football Elo Rating of 31. According to former FIFA president Sepp Blatter , India is "the sleeping giant of world football". Rahim's death in
2068-471: Was an international invitational association football tournament organised by the AIFF and named after the First Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru . The Tri-Nation Series is a three-team football tournament organised by the AIFF. The first edition was held in 2017. The Intercontinental Cup is a four-team association football tournament organised by the AIFF. The first edition
2115-440: Was established in Calcutta in 1893 but had no Indians on its board until the 1930s. The All India Football Federation (AIFF), the national governing body of football in India, was formed in 1937 but did not become affiliated with FIFA until at least a decade later. India insisted on playing barefoot whereas other national sides wore boots. Footballer Jyotish Chandra Guha brought global attention to Indian football when he became
2162-606: Was held in 2018. A red box around the year indicates tournaments played within India India has never played in the finals of the FIFA World Cup . After gaining independence in 1947, India managed to qualify for the World Cup held in 1950 . This was due to Myanmar , Indonesia , and the Philippines withdrawing from qualification round . However, prior to the start of the tournament, India withdrew due to
2209-420: Was set up in modern-day West Bengal in 1889, became famous in 1911 when it became the first Indian team to win the IFA Shield , a tournament previously won only by British teams based in India. They defeated East Yorkshire Regiment 2–1 in the tournament's final in a victory that is still regarded as one of the greatest win by an Indian football team before independence. The Indian Football Association (IFA)
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