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From video: Little cash, few mentors, no street game: India’s football crisis | Let's Talk About Indian Football
Published: April 1, 2026
Video Description
#footballindia #footballindustry
Tune into the full episode: https://www.newslaundry.com/2026/04/01/cash-coaches-culture-the-missing-foundations-of-indian-football
Rs 16 lakh for an astrologer to pick the playing XI. At the same time, the All India Football Federation’s budget has shrunk by nearly 70 percent – from Rs 30 crore in 2019-20 to just Rs 8 crore in 2024-25.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh, with a lower FIFA ranking and a fraction of India’s population, spends nearly six times more on football.
So what exactly is going wrong with Indian football?
In Episode 3 of Let’s Talk About: Indian Football, Abhinandan Sekhri is joined by Jayadev Mahapatra – a grassroots reformer who’s been reshaping football development in Odisha.
that powers nations like Brazil and Argentina – this conversation dives deep into why India continues to lag behind.
If the system is failing young talent at every level, can going “local” actually save Indian football?
Tune in.
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