It was considered a new dawn for Indian football when the Hero Indian Super League was formulated, with the tournament supposedly carrying the broader vision of improving the standard of football in the country and enabling local footballers to broaden their skill sets.
The tournament has so far attracted a lot of interest from football lovers across the country with good numbers in attendance in the stadiums as well, as hooked to the action on television and other mediums. Now with the ISL popular, what of the elephant in the room that is the I-League, the incumbent football league of the country?
A merger of the two leagues is the best solution to the problem and here’s five good reasons why this would be best for business:
#1 A single unified league
A country should have only one established league thereby making it a single point of reference as far as football is concerned. There can be different tiers (first division, second division etc.), but there cannot be two competing leagues. The only thing it does is fragment the attention the sport gets between the traditional and new leagues.
We’ve already seen an example of this in India before – the Indian Premier League (IPL) jostled with the Indian Cricket League (ICL) in the initial years, hockey also saw the fragmentation with two governing bodies and many different leagues over the years. Moreover, since the ISL has the blessing of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), the governing body would do well to lay down the hammer and merge the two competitions to ensure a single, strong, unified league, which is best for the country.
#2 Scattering of talent
Another fallout of competing leagues is the scattering of talent that happens. The rather awkward predicament that it puts a lot of the players in is one that we don’t want to see where a few of them would be stuck in the i-League and others in the ISL. Also, if the ISL continues to attract the better foreign talent, then the I-League will die a slow death thanks to cannibalization.
So, the merger would address a major issue in ensuring that there is a single umbrella under which the Indian players play with no clashing obligations while also making sure that the knock-on effect from the best of foreign talent is infused into one league. It would also allow scouting for the national teams to happen at once.
#3 Leveraging of resources and infrastructure
There are a few things that are very obvious when you look at the two leagues. The ISL has the money and the pulling power from the stars (the ones that draw eyeballs in India) and crucially it wins the television battleground, with Star Sports heavily involved. No matter how good a product or offering, it is useless if it is not carried to the masses and in this respect, the ISL is well served.
Combine this with the strengths and the constituency that the I-League has built up over the years and the two leagues can draw on each other’s strengths when they combine. Branching out and reaching each corner of the country is something the ISL will have to do, but that job will be much easier with the established credentials of the I-League in tow.
#4 Building a fanbase
Now that football fans in the country have sampled higher level of football in the ISL, rather than throng in droves to the new I-League season, they would be most unwilling to even look in it’s direction. Its like how once you’ve tasted the fine wine, you don’t go back to the lower grades.
Two leagues would create a situation where the interest in football would be on and off during a year, resulting in crests and troughs. Combining the two will help fan bases to grow, allowing the newer ones to connect with the old loyalists and thus have larger distribution of fan pockets. The increased number of teams and multiple representatives from the same region will help boost the product and help establish a full-fledged football season and avoid a clash of dates.
#5 Knockout/ league to full blown league
Right now, the ISL is designed in a fashion where the top four teams qualify for the semi-finals and then there is a grand final, making it something of an exhibition showpiece. So the team that performs best in the league may not necessarily be the ultimate winner which is harsh in a way.
You might say that the IPL does the same, but the situation is not the same. T20 is but one form of cricket and it is the shortest form and hence it is alright that the tournament lasts for only two months. A football season on the other hand, should stretch throughout the year and be a test of endurance as well as skill where the top team at the end of the total gamut of home and away games is the ultimate winner.
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