FOOT BALL IN INDIA

FOOTBALL IN INDIA
Football is one of 's most popular sports, and is said to rank second only behind in popularity. Football is played in almost all schools in India. Football is also said to be the top sport in the states of India. Once Asian champions, the standards of Indian football have decreased due to a lack of investment. As other Asian nations, in which football is the most popular sport, received large investment and ushered professionalism into their system, Indian football was largely neglected in prefernece to , where the is among the top three countries in the world.

In September 2006, India and Brazil signed an agreement formalise a scheme to train Indian footballers and coaches (formerly Calcutta), in the state of , is considered to be the home of Indian football. The city contains the two most famous Indian teams and . Derbies between these two clubs are popular events in Kolkata. Recently Goan clubs have been doing very well in the I-league. are the defending champions.The Indian Football Association (IFA) was established once again in Calcutta in 1893, but did not have a single Indian on its board till the 1930s.

Football in India was spread during the days of the . Many football clubs in India were created during this time, and pre-date many of the organisations and clubs, such as , which are predominant in the game today. The first recorded game in India took place between ‘Calcutta Club of Civilians' and ‘The Gentlemen of Barrackpore' in 1854 Calcutta FC was the first club to be established in 1872, though reports suggest that they were initially a rugby club and switched their attentions to football as late as 1894.

Other early clubs include Dalhousie Club, Traders Club and Naval Volunteers Club.
Initially games were played between army teams, however clubs were soon set up around the country. was set up in what is now West Bengal in 1889. The club became famous in 1911 when it became the first Indian team to lift the IFA Shield, a tournament previously won only by British teams based in India. It defeated the Eastern Yorkshire Regiment 2-1 in the final of the tournament in a victory that is still regarded by many as the greatest by an Indian team before Independence.