Little cash, few mentors, no street game: India’s football crisis | Let's Talk About Indian Football

#footballindia #footballindustry Tune into the full episode: https://www.newslaundry.com/2026/04/01/cash-coaches-culture-the-missing-foundations-of-indian-football Rs 16 lakh for an astrologer to pick the playing XI. At the same time, the All India Football Federation’s budget has shrunk by nearly 70 percent – from Rs 30 crore in 2019-20 to just Rs 8 crore in 2024-25. Meanwhile, Bangladesh, with a lower FIFA ranking and a fraction of India’s population, spends nearly six times more on football. So what exactly is going wrong with Indian football? In Episode 3 of Let’s Talk About: Indian Football, Abhinandan Sekhri is joined by Jayadev Mahapatra – a grassroots reformer who’s been reshaping football development in Odisha. that powers nations like Brazil and Argentina – this conversation dives deep into why India continues to lag behind. If the system is failing young talent at every level, can going “local” actually save Indian football? Tune in. Subscribe to Newslaundry: http://rzp.io/rzp/nlsm Power our election coverage: https://rzp.io/rzp/zTQadhQFFT Unpack story behind bulldozers in Kashi: https://rzp.io/rzp/nl6yv82bk Join the #FightToBreathe: https://rzp.io/rzp/T4Ob0FCb Download the accessible Newslaundry app: https://www.newslaundry.com/download-app Join us on WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Va61PEo0QeacOqU9vr2k Follow and engage with us on social media: Facebook: https://facebook.com/newslaundry Twitter: https://twitter.com/newslaundry Instagram: https://instagram.com/newslaundry