Cape Verde’s stunning World Cup rise highlights India’s football failure
Not only football fans across the world but even ordinary people would not have heard about Cape Verde before the 2026 edition of the FIFA World Cup kicked off in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It is also known as the Republic of Cabo Verde and is situated in the central Atlantic Ocean off the coast of West Africa. The group of islands measures 4,033 sq km and has a population of less than five lakh. Praia is the capital city of Cabo Verde.
Cape Verdeans took the world of football by storm, and fans across the globe would have shed tears for them as they trooped out of the stadium early Saturday morning after conceding defeat to Argentina in the knockout match, losing 2-3. Even the most hardcore Argentinian fan would have breathed a sigh of relief when Lionel Messi scored the match-winner in the dying minutes of the game. There were expectations that Cape Verde would cause the biggest upset of the 2026 FIFA World Cup by dethroning Argentina, which had a galaxy of football superstars, including Messi, in the line-up.
The rise of this tiny island nation to the global arena of football is both mesmerizing and inspiring. A country that became sovereign only in 1975 (the year Indira Gandhi imprisoned India under the pretext of the Internal Emergency) has become a sporting power over the last five decades. Remember, India is yet to qualify for the final round of the FIFA World Cup and ranks 138th, while Cape Verde is placed 67th. It is time India sought the assistance of this tiny nation if it wishes to emerge as a soccer power, at least in Asia.
Despite the absence of major clubs like Real Madrid or Manchester United, Cape Verde succeeded in cobbling together a bunch of players and challenging world football’s top-ranked teams. What was the All India Football Federation doing all these years? Football bosses in India, ranging from Asok Ghosh to Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi, failed miserably to build a strong domestic team and send players to international events. How many of our football fans know that India played in the semi-final of the Melbourne Summer Olympics in 1956? What makes this memory sweeter is the fact that India was the first Asian country to play in the semi-final of the Olympic football. Not only that, India defeated hosts Australia 4-2 to reach the semi-final, where Yugoslavia had the better of them, and India went down 4-1. The team was coached by the legendary Syed Abdul Rahim of Hyderabad.
Football stagnated in India after the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. While the game made major strides internationally, Indians became alienated from it, except in states like Punjab, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Kerala, Karnataka, and Goa. The defence forces had their own teams like Services XI, ASC Bangalore, EME Centre Secunderabad, BSF Jalandhar, and MRC Wellington. Corporate houses like Tata, Mafatlal, Orkay Mills, Vasco, Salgaocar, Sesa, Leaders, and JCT Mills, Phagwara, along with police teams like Punjab Police, RAC Bikaner, and Hyderabad Police, enthralled audiences in states like Kerala, Bombay, Delhi, and Calcutta. I am not forgetting teams like Mohammedan Sporting, Mohun Bagan, and East Bengal — the three giants of Calcutta.
Unknown to both the old and younger generations is the fact that India was home to the fifth-oldest football tournament in the world. The Durand Cup football championship was first held in 1888 and to date remains the oldest existing football tournament in Asia. These developments happened when newspapers looked the other way whenever the name of football was mentioned. There were no sponsors or patrons for football during those days. The Rovers Cup played at Bombay’s Cooperage remains fresh in memory. Though eastern India had the IFA Shield and its Super League, they were largely confined to Calcutta itself.
In Kerala, each district had one All-India football tournament. Teams from Punjab, Bombay, Calcutta, Goa, and Bangalore shifted their homes to Kerala during the months of March to May, as it was the football season in the state. Old-timers still get thrilled when reminded of Inder Singh, Manjit Singh, Jarnail Singh, Shyam and Ranji Thapa, Subroto Bhattacharjee, Subhas Bhowmick, the mercurial Magan Singh and his brothers from Rajasthan, and Bandyopadhyay of Tata Bombay. Those were the days of real players who exhibited brilliance through speed, stamina, and shooting prowess. By the 1990s, however, stars took over the maidans. Undue publicity killed the game, and the new generation looked like Tritons among minnows.
Though many business houses came forward in the post-liberalisation era to sponsor the game, nothing has paid off to date. India has a national league, the ISL (Indian Super League), thanks to industrialists like Mukesh Ambani, but there are no quality players. The clubs that once fed the national circuit with players have shut down, while many maidans have disappeared from the face of the earth. ISL clubs are allowed to field three or four foreign players each season, but what we get to see are players past their prime who are no longer wanted in their own countries. India has become a dumping ground for outdated and faded stars who have no market anywhere else in the world. Football is a multi-billion-dollar business. Stars fly around the world in their own private executive jets.
One more thing — African nations are the new stars of football. Argentina, the reigning champions, won against Cape Verde on Saturday, but it was only because of sheer luck. The artistry of the Cabo Verdeans knew no limits, and had it been any other day, there is no doubt that the Argentinians would have boarded the return flight to Buenos Aires. Well, tomorrow is another day. Meanwhile, please shed a tear for India.
Note:
1. Text in Blue points to additional data on the topic.
2. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.
For all the latest updates, download PGurus App.
- Farmer Power: An outdated ideology - July 24, 2026
- Kerala priest is the master brain behind Cockroach agitation - July 23, 2026
- Argentina sinks English dreams, enters World Cup soccer final - July 16, 2026
