Asian Games 2023: Indian football teams cleared to participate after sports ministry relaxes entry rules
The Indian sports ministry had earlier mandated that only teams which have been in the top eight in Asia in its sport can represent India in Hangzhou.
Football
After months of speculation, the Indian men’s and women’s football teams have been cleared to participate at the Asian Games 2023, which will be held in Hangzhou, People's Republic of China, from September 23 to October 8.
The green signal comes after the Indian Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports decided to relax its stance on the criteria that decided which national sports federations can send their teams to the Games on government cost.
The rule, earlier relayed to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and other national sports federations by the ministry, stated that ‘for team events, only those sports teams which have achieved a ranking up to eighth among participating countries of Asia in the last one year should be considered for participation in Asian Games’.
The Indian men’s football team is currently ranked 18th in Asia and has been nowhere close to the top eight in the continent in the past year. The same goes for the women’s team, which is currently 11th in the rankings amongst AFC nations.
“The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India, has decided to relax the rules to facilitate participation of both the teams, which were not qualifying as per the existing criterion,” Indian sports minister Anurag Thakur said. “Keeping in mind their performances in recent times, the Ministry decided to grant the relaxation.”
The IOA had refused to clear the Indian football teams from playing at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta based on the same ranking criteria.
"It’s indeed an important day for Indian football and a testament to our resolution to develop the sport in India," All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Kalyan Chaubey said. “Indian football has been on an unprecedented rise recently, and I believe this impetus will further boost our players’ morale in all upcoming events.”
The Indian men’s football team won gold medals at the New Delhi 1951 and Jakarta 1962 Asian Games and clinched a bronze at Bangkok 1970. However, India’s performances at the continental meet have been on a downslide since then.
If everything pans out, Hangzhou 2023 will be the 16th Asian Games appearance for the Indian men’s team which won the SAFF Championship and Inter-Continental Cup in recent months.
The Indian women’s team, meanwhile, has played in only two Asian Games editions so far, finishing eighth at Bangkok 1998 and ninth at Incheon 2014. Women’s football debuted at the Asian Games in 1990 while men’s football has been a part of the continental event since the inaugural edition in 1951.