Indian football continues to struggle off the field, and this time the numbers tell the story. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has revealed that it used only ₹4.38 crore out of the ₹8.78 crore allocated by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports for FY 2024–2025. That’s just 51.02% of the total budget.
The funds weren’t meant for luxuries but for the essentials — training camps, domestic competitions, and exposure tours. These are the building blocks of player development. Yet, a large portion of the money is simply lying unused. The question is unavoidable: is this poor planning, lack of seriousness, or outright negligence?
This isn’t just underuse, it’s massive neglect. Compare it with other Asian countries — Hong Kong FA receives more than ₹55 crore a year, and Singapore FA operates with nearly ₹200 crore. When Indian football can’t even use the small amount it already has, how can it expect to match up internationally?
Even more worrying is the long-term trend. AIFF’s budget has been shrinking year after year. From ₹30 crore in 2019-20, it dropped to ₹15 crore, and now stands at just ₹9 crore. While other sports like golf, tennis, and bodybuilding have seen a rise in funding — and yoga alone has grown by nearly 400% — football, India’s second most-followed sport, continues to be ignored.
This mismanagement raises a harsh reality. If the federation cannot spend even the basic funds, how can it be trusted to nurture talent, set up grassroots programs, or build a strong national team?
For Indian football lovers, the numbers are a painful reminder that the sport’s struggle is not just on the pitch, but in the very governance that is supposed to support it.