All India Football Reliance

FIFA President Gianni Infantino. 

So, someone who’s allegedly linked to a 'cricket' corruption can also pick a national 'football' coach?

The day I posted it on my FB timeline, there were few likes from some journalists, ex-footballers and football lovers.

The recent juggling of the various AIFF committees and sub-committees may force us to rethink if PP and Co. are really serious about the sport in India after they officially included its marketing partners in important decision-making bodies.

It’s also rare for commercial partners or sponsors to be given decision-making roles in national sports federations, but why AIFF has allotted the spaces to some including one, who was allegedly involved in cricket’s IPL corruption in 2013, is anybody’s guess.

I had an interesting chat on the topic with one of the senior journalists, who had covered more cricket than football.

He defended AIFF and blasted the top Calcutta clubs for having killed the game.

“If R is pushing the cash in the game, won’t they want their men to handle the show. Isn’t it obvious? It’s better than pozi cash coming to the clubs in gunny sacks. If the Indian Super League is drawing crowds and getting sponsors, why rant?” he asked.

I've no issues with money being pumped into the sport, but interference from sponsors is unwarranted. We also can’t rule out their demoniacal presence in the multiple committees.

Do we see Barclays' people in the Premier League management or FIFA being guided by their commercial partners? If a franchisee sells chicken burgers to its clients, it doesn't mean it has the right to sell football too just because it’s sponsoring some events.

When I told my journalist friend that Shyam Thapa, who will now head the new technical committee, have a better technical acumen than someone from cricket, he chucked, “Thapa is a dead wood. He doesn't even follow modern football. I consider PP a double dead wood. So let's flow with the tide.”

My friend supported the idea of having people from the commercial partners, but didn’t want Thapa. I really got confused with his unbalanced opinions, but I can’t blame him because anyone will find it difficult to solve this tricky AIFF theorem.

Meanwhile, the two top Bengalis in the federation — one non-resident and the other original — batted in favour of SR. They’re Indian football’s ‘Johor-Bhanu’ — Bengali films all-time famous comedians.

It was also funny to read one of their comments, “Everything is related to commercial exploitation. We wanted an outsider to tell us, with his BCCI experience, how we can actually improve the technical committee’s decision making.”