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The first edition of the Indian Super League (ISL) threw up plenty of surprises, heartbreaks, triumphs and generated the right amount of noise amongst the followers of “the beautiful game”. For a sport like football which has long languished in the shadows of cricket, in India, the ISL was something that was due given that there were similar such leagues designed for a lot of the other sports in India.The ISL was fast paced, adrenaline packed and a melange of big names and there was little surprise that the sport finally managed to pull in a huge number of viewers – both loyalists as well as newcomers and gave it it's long awaited due.We take a look at the five biggest reasons why the tournament was a grand success:
#1 The ability to attract big names
Alessandro Del Piero, David Trezeguet, Robert Pires, Luis Garcia, Joan Capdevila, Nicolas Anelka and David James were some of the biggest names in the world of football during their hey-day. True, they were all well past their prime but the fact that the league could bring such big names as ambassadors of the sport was a big thing. They were a major reason as to why crowds flocked to the stadiums to see them in action.
Be it for the full 90 minutes or just a few minutes, seeing these players in action was a thing of joy for most of the fans. Also, the fact that they played crucial roles during their teams’ matches, and thrilled the audiences with their footballing skills was the added icing on the cake.
As the league grows in stature there is hope amongst football fans that they would get to see the likes of Thierry Henry, Andrea Pirlo and a host of others play in India.
#2 Plenty of investment put in
The fact that the ISL trumped its official counterpart the I-League in terms of popularity and viewership is because of the viral marketing, the campaigning, the sponsorships, and the big investment that went into its making.
From the catchy “Lets Football” theme song, to the “Yeh Diwali Football waali” campaign and the vast number of corporate sponsorships that were seen on the jerseys of the eight teams, the investors got everything spot on in terms of their involvement. And the results showed.
With viral publicity that extended to the social media, the ISL found takers in a vast audience. Also, the fact that it was telecast at primetime ensured that they trumped the TV ratings of popular television serials and soaps to give football a new dimension in India.
All this was long due, and something that Indian football had not seen in a long, long time.
#3 Team owners did their bit
John Abraham, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Ranbir Kapoor, Abhishek Bachchan and Hrithik Roshan were all owners of franchises in the Indian Super League. They are some of the biggest names from the Film industry and greats of Indian Cricket, people with a reputation and the ability to back their words, who invested in the sport.
Not only were they present during the games at the stadium, but were seen wildly cheering for their respective teams. Amongst some of the more animated team owners, was John Abraham, who was constantly seen cheering his team and even sharing their despair when they lost. The local face of the franchise was an important aspect of the ISL as it ensured that there was a lot of support at the home grounds for the teams.
#4 Tie-ups with prominent European clubs
Atletico Madrid, Fiorentina and Feyenoord were some of the prominent European football clubs that tied up with teams from the ISL, to not just promote the sport but also help with the infrastructure and the grassroots development of the game.
With the teams set to continue these arrangements in the future, the tie-ups will be very crucial in driving the grassroots development initiatives and the development of the franchises, and so will add a lot of value.
A club like Atletico Madrid added to all this by making a lot of efforts to show their involvement. They unveiled the Atletico de Kolkata franchise at the Vicente Calderon, made them train at their headquarters in Spain prior to the tournament, and had their star player Koke attend the finals. In addition to all that, there has been speculation that Arnab Mondal, a central defender for Atletico de Kolkata, has been interesting the club, and they might give him a chance to prove himself in Spain.
#5 Social outlook and Grassroots development
The thing with sports that are growing is, with the right amount of investments, direction, assistance and intentions, it can help create a feeder system where they can generate sportsmen on a regular basis. And that was one of the main aims of the ISL.
Corporate sponsorships went beyond the pitches of the ISL to the grassroots, to initiate processes that will focus on developing, scouting and training young children who could go on to become the future of Indian football. Kerala Blasters FC marquee player, David James mentioned that the infrastructure for the ISL is not good but that there is tremendous potential.
Given that there is a development base in place, as the league grows over the years it will become a solid platform with good grassroots level infrastructure that will enable the competition for places grow, and along with it, help the sport of football grow even further.
