The Indian Super League (ISL) has already garnered a lot of attention from both the press and the fans of the beautiful game alike. The league will feature eight teams from eight different cities in India. Interested parties were invited to bid for teams some time back. Anticipation around the tournament grew when the organizers, IMG-Reliance received a hugely positive response from more than 30 interested parties for its ‘Invitation to Bid’ tender. The bidding closed on March 27th. While the actual identities of individuals and entities bidding for teams isn’t known, it’s one of the worst kept secrets that among that highly selected group are cricket legends, Bollywood stars and a host of corporates.
Football’s growing popularity in India coupled with Reliance Foundation’s investments in sport mean that the Indian Super League could be a instant hit purely on the format. However, the real icing on the cake is the presence of global superstars such as ex-Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke, former Argentina forward Hernan Crespo and England’s Michael Owen. With the backing of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and with Star India backing IMG Reliance, it’s no surprise that a franchise property in sports in India has elicited such a response from the business as well as sports and Bollywood community. IPL, in the year 2007, had 11 bids out of which eight won the franchises.
The nine cities in the reckoning are Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Guwahati, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune, out of which eight will be shortlisted. Earlier, the Indian national coach said he was not sure if players would be practicing with their I-League clubs during the ISL. India coach Wim Koevermans said he wasn’t certain how the new venture would pan out for the national team.
A total of eight cities from Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Guwahati, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune will be chosen to host the league. The only dampener so far has been the concern of national coach Wim Koevermans over the impact of the league on the national team. “Our (National Team) first opportunity now is to play is in September. But we have to see if the I-League clubs have already started some sort of pre-season because it might affect the preparation of the national team,” said Koevermans “The ISL league will probably start in September but the I-League only starts in December.
One sensational story that has grabbed a lot of headlines is the one involving former Indian Cricket Captain Saurav Ganguly and the club taking the UEFA Champions League and European Football as a whole by storm, Atletico Madrid. Many analysts believe this tournament would mark the perfect time for big European Clubs to enter the Indian Football Market through a partnership or joint venture with an Indian individual or entity.