Hope football can be as popular!

Football may be huge globally but in India, it is still an emerging sport. Indian football thrives on club championships and unlike cricket, it seldom gets the exposure it deserves. However when football stars from top clubs like Mohan Bagan and East Bengal go to watch a cricket match in full support of their teams, even wearing cricket jerseys, it just reflects the unity of the Indian sporting community.

At the historic Eden Gardens in Kolkata, our on-field reporter spotted and caught up with East Bengal striker Alvito D'cunha who had come to watch the Bangalore-Kolkata tie of the DLF Indian Premier League (IPL) along with his teammates and opponents alike.

The East Bengal striker said that this was his first trip to the Eden Gardens to watch a cricket match and added that he enjoyed the atmosphere in the stadium. Being interviewed in the middle of the match, he said that the match was very exciting and he hoped for a good result.

West Bengal is known for its cricketing personalities, especially former India captain Sourav Ganguly who enjoys mass adoration from his home fans.

Apart from that, Bengal is also known to have a huge football following with top clubs like Mohan Bagan and East Bengal hailing from there. Alvito praised Bengal's rich history of sport and said that football and cricket rule the roost among the most popular sports in India's eastern state.

The ace forward was then asked whether he wishes football could get the attention it deserves in an otherwise cricket-crazy nation.

"So far, it's nothing of that sort but I hope very soon football also gets very popular and hope we can also do something like cricket," he said wistfully.

Asked about the IPL teams he and his friends from East Bengal and Mohan Bagan were supporting, Alvito concluded, "Right now, we are just wearing the Bangalore Royal Challengers jerseys and have come here to support them. But most of the players are from Kolkata and it doesn't matter which team wins as long as the best team wins."

In that game, Kolkata Knight Riders ended up beating Bangalore Royal Challengers by 5 runs.

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nikit
Posts: 4

futball sucks
Reply #1 on : Wed June 04, 2008, 00:05:47

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football sucks.. its got the place it deserves... the whole concept of that game is boring... it doesnt require any strategies or much of a skill..!! at the end of the day its jus 22 players running after a ball.. cricket is involves really complex game play as compared to futball..!!! cant understand why they play so much of futball or football in europe..!!

yatheeshwaran
Posts: 4

futball rules
Reply #2 on : Wed June 04, 2008, 03:04:13

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DLF's best thinking to bring IPL is great,but they hav to begin IFL football is a great game,they have to give support to indian footballers to become international standard,so please DLF begin IFL

chris
Posts: 4

lol
Reply #3 on : Wed June 04, 2008, 08:49:42

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please do not talk about football on a cricket site. football is a horrible game. its absolutely nothing as compared to cricket.

Dr. Kushal Banerjee
Posts: 4

www.no2ragging.org
Reply #4 on : Sat June 14, 2008, 13:04:24

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Indeed in India, football, hockey, boxing and many other sports do not get the attention like cricket.

When the Indian cricket team is a world class team (though very few countries play cricket), Indian football lags far behind.

I am living in Kolkata, West Bengal. I agree with your views.

But one point, that needs to be mentioned that Mohun Bagan players (who played barefoot) defeated the british team in 1911. An when East Bengal arrived, it defeated Mohun Bagan several times. So, it clearly proves that both the teams have great potentials.

These two arch rival teams still draw huge crowds during their matches, but Indian football, hockey, boxing, etc. needs much more attention.

Regards,
Dr. Kushal Banerjee,
http://www.n2ragging.org