Pune FC and Bharat FC closing down is the beginning of the end of I-League

I-League club Pune FC are ready to shut down their first team operations. Bharat FC, which made their I-League debut last year, have not signed a single player and according to a Goal.com report, a lot of their staff have submitted resignations and their future is looking bleak. Sources told Firstpost that Salgaocar FC would have pulled out if they had been relegated last season and will most probably shut first team operations from next year (this is their 60th year and they want to see it out). Royal Wahingdoh are going to take a decision in October-November about whether they have the means to play in the I-League this season. Mohun Bagan is struggling financially and East Bengal are crippled after the chit-fund scam. [caption id=“attachment_2398628” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Pune FC in action during the I-League. Image credit: Pune FC[/caption] But is this surprising? Does this shock you? Well, it shouldn’t. Because this is the beginning of the end of the I-League and the sacrifice that Indian football has to make on the road to eventually having one marketable domestic league that people actually watch on television and in stadiums. And that league is not the I-League — that league is the Indian Super League, backed by powerhouses IMG-Reliance and Star Sports. In comparison, the I-League has nothing to back it up but the All India Football Federation’s support — which is clearly in favour of the ISL now. And why shouldn’t it be? Consider this — you’re a businessman with money to invest in football. Which league would you want your team to play in: the I-League or the ISL? The league which only has tradition as its backbone or the league which is broadcast by India’s top sports channel? The league which struggles to garner any attention, let alone fill stadiums or the league which was the fourth most watched in world football in terms of average attendance in its first year? The league which sees teams embroiled in chit fund scams or the league which has top industrialists, bollywood stars and cricketers owning teams? The answer is simple: as a wise investor, you would put your money in the ISL. It shouldn’t take two teams going shutting up shop to make one realise that the I-League never was, and never will be a viable premier football league. Even if it is scrapped, the only loss will be of tradition — and you cannot pay players and staff with tradition. You need money. “The remaining club owners will bleed till one day they realise that enough is enough. Those still sticking around in the I-League are doing so because of the love of the game. But one day, money will run out,” an official of a Goa-based club told Firstpost. Goa’s Dempo and Salgaocar have joined hands and already invested in FC Goa — Dempo is now relegated to I-League 2 and Salgaocar, as mentioned above, are nearing closure. “There are no eyeballs in the I-League. In the ISL, you get attention, you get viewership and there is the hope that one day you will make some money. There is no hope in the I-League,” the source added. Bengaluru FC is the only viable brand in the I-League that attracts any sort of attention — they too, after holding steady against releasing players for ISL 2014, gave in and allowed their stars to join the league. However, Bagan secretary Anjan Mitra is far from convinced about the ISL model. Even though he agrees that clubs need money to run, he was defiant that his organisation will run for the ’next 125 years’. “The ISL clubs run with profit motive, our club runs with football motive. We have millions of fans and cannot stop playing. As for joining the ISL, even though I’m against it, we will have to sit down and discuss it (if the I-League shuts down).” Teams going out of a league always has a ripple effect on the rest of the teams. Mustafa Ghouse, CEO of JSW Sports which owns Bengaluru FC, admits that the prestige of the league also suffers. “If it’s true (Pune and Bharat FC folding), then it’s a big blow for all of us. Pune is an established name and of the better run clubs with a good system and mindset. I think it’s important for the league to hold on to these big names rather than let them fold. We should be looking at more teams joining, not dropping out. All in all, it’s a good wake up call for Indian football,” he told Firstpost. More than a wake up call, this is the sad truth. The I-League prize money of Rs 70 lakhs barely covers a months payroll for top clubs and the AIFF does not distribute broadcast revenue among clubs (not that there is significant money coming from there). The ISL’s case is different with Star having a stake in the league — meaning that they can give it prime slots and advertise it heavily. Star puts money into a product it partly owns, and the money which comes back is recycled. It’s an easy model. Apart from the loss of tradition and history that will come with the demise of I-League clubs like Bagan and East Bengal, there’s also the case of a lot of players and staff suddenly losing their jobs. This of course is hypothetical — but all signs point to the ISL eventually becoming the premier league of the country. “Call it whatever you want, but this nation needs an eight-month league,” Ghouse told us. That leaves the AIFF with two options — either they offer to run the closing clubs, like the Board of Control for Cricket in India is mulling to do for Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings. But they don’t have that sort of money and clout. Which means they propose the clubs to become part of the ISL — this will keep brand names like Bagan and East Bengal and attract more investment. That the country will have one league is inevitable and also easier said than done — but if Indian football wants to retain its history and progress at the same time, then the I-League simply has to go. When you talk about a revolution, be it in football or politics, it won’t come without huge upheavals — and these include closures of clubs for perfectly valid reasons. As Stephen King wrote in Rose Madder, “It’s best to be ruthless with the past.” And Indian football needs to do exactly that.   The writer tweets @TheFalseNo9