Indian football hopes World Cup buzz can lift domestic league

India’s domestic football leaders are hoping this summer’s World Cup interest can do what past tournaments have not: help turn a burst of national enthusiasm into something more lasting for the local game. India did not qualify for the World Cup, but the tournament still drew strong attention from viewers in the country, according to The Guardian’s reporting. That matters because Indian football is entering a crucial period after more than a year of negative headlines around the Indian Super League, the country’s top tier, which is set to begin its new season on 4 September. For clubs and league officials, the timing is unusually helpful. Ravi Puskur, chief executive of FC Goa, told The Guardian that the World Cup has pushed football back into the centre of public conversation. FC Goa won India’s Super Cup last season, giving the club a platform as the domestic schedule restarts. The challenge, though, is familiar. Major international tournaments often spark temporary interest in football in India, but that attention has not always translated into sustained support for domestic clubs, stronger attendances, or deeper fan engagement. What appears different this time, based on the reporting, is that the sport’s administrators are trying to rebuild the domestic structure at the same moment that the national audience is paying more attention. That combination could matter. A rejuvenated league, if it holds together, can offer fans a regular product to follow once the World Cup spotlight fades. It can also give Indian players, coaches and clubs a more visible stage, which is essential for a country still trying to grow football beyond isolated pockets of enthusiasm. There are still important unknowns. The feed material does not spell out the full extent of the structural changes inside the ISL, nor does it say how many fans watched the World Cup in India, or how clubs plan to convert that attention into ticket sales, sponsorships or long-term engagement. But the broad goal is clear: stop treating football as a quadrennial event in India and make it part of the weekly sporting conversation. That is easier said than done. Cricket still dominates the Indian sports landscape, and football’s domestic ecosystem has long faced uneven visibility, financial strain and questions about stability. Even so, the World Cup’s pull showed that the audience exists. The open question is whether Indian football can now keep enough of it when the international tournament is over and the domestic season begins. If the league can present a more credible, better-supported competition this autumn, the recent surge in interest may give it a useful tailwind. If not, the sport risks another familiar cycle: a brief spike in attention, followed by a return to the margins.

Source: The Guardian Football - https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jul/23/everyone-is-hooked-on-football-indian-league-seeks-to-ride-world-cup-wave