KOLKATA: India’s new football league kicked off yesterdaywith a spirited clash and a glitzy pyrotechnic opening ceremony that organisers hope will ignite the country’s passion for the “beautiful game”.
Atletico de Kolkata trounced Mumbai City 3-0 in the first match of the Indian Super League (ISL), that has lured former international stars such as Spain’s Luis Garcia and France’s Nicolas Anelka out of retirement.
Cricketing great Sourav Ganguly said the league was the beginning of something great, arguing there was room for football in the cricket-obsessed country of 1.25 billion people.
“It may not be cricket but it will be the next biggest sport,” Ganguly, co-owner of Kolkata, said ahead of kick-off.
Former Ethiopian captain Fikru Lemessa, 28, scored in the first half, while 33-year-old Spaniard Borja Fernandez hit the net in the second, sending the home crowd at Salt Lake stadium into raptures.
Spain’s Arnal Carbo sealed the win with a goal in extra time.
Organisers hope the city-based franchises, each with a famous – if ageing – frontman and modelled on cricket’s glamorous Indian Premier League, will bolster popularity for the sport during the 10-week competition.
Cricketing greats such as Sachin Tendulkar and Bollywood A-listers are co-owners of the teams along with Atletico Madrid of Spain’s La Liga.
Rupert Murdoch’s Star TV is showing the tournament, which is being backed by sports management giant IMG.
The opening ceremony included throbbing Bollywood music, dancers and a large fireworks display, watched by celebrities, politicians and sports stars.
Mamata Banerjee, chief minister of West Bengal of which Kolkata is the capital, was front row, chatting to Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani who is bank rolling the league, and Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan.
Some 70,000 tickets were sold for the match, according to organisers, but pockets of the stadium were empty.
The crowd roared with approval during the ceremony as Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra introduced Tendulkar to the centre of the ground.
Experts say the ambitious ISL project faces an uphill battle to convert India’s cricket-mad population and develop the country’s existing pockets of passion for football.
On a visit to India in 2007, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said India was the “sleeping giant” of world football.
But its national side languishes at 158 in the world rankings, which experts blame on sports authorities’ failure to develop training grounds and young players. However, Mumbai manager Peter Reid said: “There’s room enough for two brilliant sports in this sports-mad country,” he said ahead of the match.AFP
