AIFF in the red? Dues for Brazil friendlies put national body in a spot

The All-India Football Federation (AIFF) may be left red-faced before the global community of the sport as they are now firefighting to pay the remaining dues for Brazil and Uruguay’s hefty appearance fees to play the friendlies last month.  A media report says that a proposal by AIFF president Kalyan Choubey to liquidate the fixed deposit of the federation was stalled by members during a virtual Special General Body Meeting (SGBM) on Sunday.

The news has stirred up a hornet’s nest as only last month in an executive committee meeting in Kolkata, Choubey had promised the committee members in reply to a query that the federation would not have to bear any financial liabilities for the three high profile home friendlies.

Incidentally, National Herald in a report on 8^th October (Did AIFF commit a financial hara-kiri by hosting the Brazil friendlies?) hinted that the federation would fall short to the tune of Rs 30 crore vis-à-vis the total cost of the project projected at around Rs 80 crore. Responding to a PTI query as to whether his proposal to liquidate a AIFF fixed deposit to the tune of Rs 21 crore was resisted by the members, Choubey said, ‘’No, I am not giving my version. It was an internal meeting and what is there to tell outside (people).’’

The extravagant move of the AIFF, despite an initial surge of excitement among the country’s football fans, fell far below the federation’s expectations both in terms of gate receipts as well as sponsorship. It was particularly embarrassing to see only modest interest levels among the paying public for the Brazil game, thanks largely to the exorbitant pricing, while for the Uruguay game – the ticket prices were reduced by 90 per cent to a nominal Rs 200 from the initially projected price of Rs 2000.

 The matches having been done and dusted a month back, it’s unrealistic to think any corporate backing can bail out the AIFF at this point – which leaves one with the option of approaching the Union sports ministry. Incidentally, the BJP-ruled state government in Bengal had already done it’s bit by picking up tabs of the hotel stay of both Brazil and Uruguay – with the Celeste having stayed in the city for nearly a week.

 The financial miscalculation on part of AIFF, meanwhile, is apparently isolating Choubey from some of the influential members of his executive committee ahead of the elections on 20^th December. Reports say that NA Haris, the AIFF Vice President, put his foot down on the proposal of liquidation of fixed deposits on the grounds that ‘’there is a decision of the Executive Committee of the AIFF that the FD cannot be liquidated.’’

What lends extra weightage to the crisis is that the looming AIFF elections may have prompted the presence of Praful Patel, national working president of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Choubey’s predecessor, in the online meeting. It is learnt that Patel was quite vocal during the meeting and asked the president to let the members know when and how much money the AIFF will have to pay to the creditors.

Going forward, the AIFF are likely to convene a meeting with the topic of liquidation of FD solely on the agenda before it be placed on the executive committee. Weighing in on the subject, Subrata Dutta, a former senior vice president of AIFF and chairman of Bengal’s state body Indian Football Association (IFA), told a local YouTube channel: ‘’If the FD has to be eventually liquidated to meet the dues of the friendlies, it will have serious repurcussions on the functioning of the AIFF. On the other hand, Brazil and Uruguay may approach CAS (Court of Arbitration of Sport) is their dues are not cleared on time.’’