Sepp Blatter’s Visit to India

A few nights ago I attended a press conference at the ITC Maurya in Delhi where FIFA President Sepp Blatter announced his support of the 2015 FIFA World Club Championships and the 2017 U-17 FIFA World Cup being hosted in India.


I had mixed emotions upon hearing these announcements. On one hand, it is fantastic news and exactly what Indian football needs in order to create some positive traction in the areas of infrastructure, youth development, marketing and national excitement around the sport. On the other hand, it was a challenge to ignore the general sense of skepticism in the room about whether or not AIFF and the state associations would actually be able to work together to successfully execute these events and properly leverage them in the best interest of the growth of the game.

In the end, I brushed my skepticism aside and left the press conference in high spirits. The jovial mood wasn’t created by the ridiculous questions the Indian reporters asked Sepp Blatter or the FIFA President’s quirky personality, it was due to the reminder that the Universe led me to move to India at exactly the right time in the evolution of football in this country. I’m ready for these events and to play my part in their successful development and execution.

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