Is Asia becoming a Super Football Power?

Woah, this is even further back that I had thought it would be.

I think Ozil is originally Kurdish but anyway those names you mentioned do not make Asia a super football power.

Although you do have Ozil, Sahin, Miyachi, the guy that went Bayern (forgot his name) and Honda.

But , on topic ( ah, somewhat)

I dont think Asia will be a superpower , atleast not in the next 20 years or so.

this is due to , okay im talking about the subcontinent more than others ( india, pakistan etc) .

yea, this is due to parents empahsis on studying to become doctors , engineers and so on so forth because they think those jobs bring in the most money.

And anyone who does take sports , it is mostly and when i mean mostly im talking like 90% here , it is to play cricket.

this is also due to the fact that the majority of the people in the subcontinent are illiterate so they are blinded when it comes to seeing other things and only follow and believe what is good because of what they see on tv , i.e. different media outlets. the power of cricket has not allowed other sports to grow , and if they were big , have essentially destroyed them ( e.g. In India , hockey was the main sport, but because of commercialisation of cricket and hockeys inability to commercialise , destroyed hockey as people thought cricket was better because it brought in more money)

Before I go to the next topic , let me tell you guys something :

there are NRI'S - non residential indians, who live outside India , but still hold a indian passport . The population of NRI's ( people who still hold an indian passport or consider themselves genuine indians , because many would have converted their nationalities because of better standards in different countries {actually any living standard is better than india's standard of living as of now} ) makes India's total population much much more.

i will not be considering the NRI population for this.


Now , the 10%( who live in india ) that follow other sports , lets take football .
Because football isnt popularized by the media , parents consider it to be a waste of time and dont consider it to be a profession.

even if they are enrolled into football "academies" they are told to concentrate on their studies much more than the sport itself. this destroys spirit and they turn their head towards where the money lies.

Now these football "academies" are pathetic , the conditions are awful , the coaching isnt certified , they arent taught properly and trained well. funding is poor and the pay if they do graduate and if they do pursue a career as footballers , the pay is extremely poor.


I have merely touched the density of the situation of sports in the subcontinent and God knows how much worse it much be outside , because from what i see, it is considerably worse except for Japan, China and Australia. (south korea to an extent )

AnJl wrote:But , on topic ( ah, somewhat)

I dont think Asia will be a superpower , atleast not in the next 20 years or so.

this is due to , okay im talking about the subcontinent more than others ( india, pakistan etc) .

yea, this is due to parents empahsis on studying to become doctors , engineers and so on so forth because they think those jobs bring in the most money.

And anyone who does take sports , it is mostly and when i mean mostly im talking like 90% here , it is to play cricket.

this is also due to the fact that the majority of the people in the subcontinent are illiterate so they are blinded when it comes to seeing other things and only follow and believe what is good because of what they see on tv , i.e. different media outlets. the power of cricket has not allowed other sports to grow , and if they were big , have essentially destroyed them ( e.g. In India , hockey was the main sport, but because of commercialisation of cricket and hockeys inability to commercialise , destroyed hockey as people thought cricket was better because it brought in more money)

Before I go to the next topic , let me tell you guys something :

there are NRI'S - non residential indians, who live outside India , but still hold a indian passport . The population of NRI's ( people who still hold an indian passport or consider themselves genuine indians , because many would have converted their nationalities because of better standards in different countries {actually any living standard is better than india's standard of living as of now} )
i will not be considering the NRI population for this.


Now , the 10%( who live in india and follow other sports) that follow other sports , lets take football .
Because football is popularized by the media , parents consider it to be a waste of time and dont consider it to be a profession.

even if they are inrolled into football "academies" they are told to concentrate on their studies much more than the sport itself. this destroys spirit and they turn their head towards where the money lies.

Now these football "academies" are pathetic , the conditions are awful , the coaching isnt certified , they arent taught properly and trained well. funding is poor and the pay if they do graduate and if they do pursue a career as footballers , the pay is extremely poor.


I have merely touched the density of the situation of sports in the subcontinent and God knows how much worse it much be outside , because from what i see, it is considerably worse except for Japan, China and Australia. (south korea to an extent )

why do you know so much about them, are you from asia?

I-no wrote:

AnJl wrote:But , on topic ( ah, somewhat)

I dont think Asia will be a superpower , atleast not in the next 20 years or so.

this is due to , okay im talking about the subcontinent more than others ( india, pakistan etc) .

yea, this is due to parents empahsis on studying to become doctors , engineers and so on so forth because they think those jobs bring in the most money.

And anyone who does take sports , it is mostly and when i mean mostly im talking like 90% here , it is to play cricket.

this is also due to the fact that the majority of the people in the subcontinent are illiterate so they are blinded when it comes to seeing other things and only follow and believe what is good because of what they see on tv , i.e. different media outlets. the power of cricket has not allowed other sports to grow , and if they were big , have essentially destroyed them ( e.g. In India , hockey was the main sport, but because of commercialisation of cricket and hockeys inability to commercialise , destroyed hockey as people thought cricket was better because it brought in more money)

Before I go to the next topic , let me tell you guys something :

there are NRI'S - non residential indians, who live outside India , but still hold a indian passport . The population of NRI's ( people who still hold an indian passport or consider themselves genuine indians , because many would have converted their nationalities because of better standards in different countries {actually any living standard is better than india's standard of living as of now} )
i will not be considering the NRI population for this.


Now , the 10%( who live in india and follow other sports) that follow other sports , lets take football .
Because football is popularized by the media , parents consider it to be a waste of time and dont consider it to be a profession.

even if they are inrolled into football "academies" they are told to concentrate on their studies much more than the sport itself. this destroys spirit and they turn their head towards where the money lies.

Now these football "academies" are pathetic , the conditions are awful , the coaching isnt certified , they arent taught properly and trained well. funding is poor and the pay if they do graduate and if they do pursue a career as footballers , the pay is extremely poor.


I have merely touched the density of the situation of sports in the subcontinent and God knows how much worse it much be outside , because from what i see, it is considerably worse except for Japan, China and Australia. (south korea to an extent )

why do you know so much about them, are you from asia?

yea , i am

Im Indian , but live in the UAE , that makes me an NRI

I only spoke about them because I didnt want to sound ignorant and speak about other countries as much , though i have a basic idea of how things go.

Yeah, I figured that's the way India rolls. That's probably why I see so many Indian Doctors and Teachers here in L.A.

Lord Hispano wrote:Yeah, I figured that's the way India rolls. That's probably why I see so many Indian Doctors and Teachers here in L.A.

that isnt even one quarter of the rest of the Indians around the world

no asia will not become a superpower, except for australia that is part of the asian football federation.

All those player grew up and learned football in europe. Their origins don't mean anything,

Surag.Blueguy wrote:

el sharawy is actually Italian with an Egyptian father. LOL

el sharawy opted to play for italy..khedira opted to play for germany..cant understand what wrong u see in my post !!

Nothing wrong, just agreeing with you, reinforcing your point.

wigglesworth wrote:

Surag.Blueguy wrote:

el sharawy is actually Italian with an Egyptian father. LOL

el sharawy opted to play for italy..khedira opted to play for germany..cant understand what wrong u see in my post !!

Nothing wrong, just agreeing with you, reinforcing your point.

you are aware khediras mom is german and he has never been to africa?

Super GIF I-No

Well I do fully agree with AnJI,I attended football coaching till tenth then i was made to forcefully quit coaching so as to concentrate on academics!

Moreover football isn't a luctrative profession here in INDIA!People are only paid peanuts here for playing football !

So with no choice people prefer more lucrative professions,mostly settle in US or Middle East!

Its a known fact many Indians in US work in Intel,NASA etc.,so people are forced to follow their footsteps!

So the only for asian/sub-continental football progress is jopin some good european football club's academy learn football and then play for the Sub-Continental teams!

Zesh Rahman who played for Fulham decided to play for the Pakistan NT after playing for England U-20!More people should follow in his footsteps!

Heard recently that Micheal Chopra wanted to play for India after being dumped by England but the idiots of AIFF did not allow this to happen for crap reasons!

Further there is a Sri Lankan Dhaanish Ahmed in Chelsea's Academy,an IND expat Kei Bhullar in Norwich's Academy to name a few

The future looks bright for Asia but these should make it a point to play for asian countries and not for their adopted countries!!

Sorry for the long post but I had to vent my feelings somewhere!

AnJl wrote:
this is also due to the fact that the majority of the people in the subcontinent are illiterate so they are blinded when it comes to seeing other things and only follow and believe what is good because of what they see on tv , i.e. different media outlets.

Sorry this is a retared comment to make.If u believe illiteracy is the main reason why Cricket is the most popular sport in India then u have no clue about what u are talking about.

BeautifulGame wrote:

AnJl wrote:
this is also due to the fact that the majority of the people in the subcontinent are illiterate so they are blinded when it comes to seeing other things and only follow and believe what is good because of what they see on tv , i.e. different media outlets.

Sorry this is a retared comment to make.If u believe illiteracy is the main reason why Cricket is the most popular sport in India then u have no clue about what u are talking about.

TBH people in India are actually educated and not illiterate tats why they want their children to excel in education and become Engineers,Docs etc.,Had they been illiterate like you mentioned they would not mind their children entering sports field IMO!I fully agree with Beautiful Game

IndianGunner wrote:Super GIF I-No

Well I do fully agree with AnJI,I attended football coaching till tenth then i was made to forcefully quit coaching so as to concentrate on academics!

Moreover football isn't a luctrative profession here in INDIA!People are only paid peanuts here for playing football !

So with no choice people prefer more lucrative professions,mostly settle in US or Middle East!

Its a known fact many Indians in US work in Intel,NASA etc.,so people are forced to follow their footsteps!

So the only for asian/sub-continental football progress is jopin some good european football club's academy learn football and then play for the Sub-Continental teams!

Zesh Rahman who played for Fulham decided to play for the Pakistan NT after playing for England U-20!More people should follow in his footsteps!

Heard recently that Micheal Chopra wanted to play for India after being dumped by England but the idiots of AIFF did not allow this to happen for crap reasons!

Further there is a Sri Lankan Dhaanish Ahmed in Chelsea's Academy,an IND expat Kei Bhullar in Norwich's Academy to name a few

The future looks bright for Asia but these should make it a point to play for asian countries and not for their adopted countries!!

Sorry for the long post but I had to vent my feelings somewhere!

I think Chopra was not allowed because India dont allow dual nationalities.Probably was asked to quit England citizenship.I am not sure though.If thats the case then AIFF cant be blamed IMO.

BeautifulGame wrote:

IndianGunner wrote:Super GIF I-No

Well I do fully agree with AnJI,I attended football coaching till tenth then i was made to forcefully quit coaching so as to concentrate on academics!

Moreover football isn't a luctrative profession here in INDIA!People are only paid peanuts here for playing football !

So with no choice people prefer more lucrative professions,mostly settle in US or Middle East!

Its a known fact many Indians in US work in Intel,NASA etc.,so people are forced to follow their footsteps!

So the only for asian/sub-continental football progress is jopin some good european football club's academy learn football and then play for the Sub-Continental teams!

Zesh Rahman who played for Fulham decided to play for the Pakistan NT after playing for England U-20!More people should follow in his footsteps!

Heard recently that Micheal Chopra wanted to play for India after being dumped by England but the idiots of AIFF did not allow this to happen for crap reasons!

Further there is a Sri Lankan Dhaanish Ahmed in Chelsea's Academy,an IND expat Kei Bhullar in Norwich's Academy to name a few

The future looks bright for Asia but these should make it a point to play for asian countries and not for their adopted countries!!

Sorry for the long post but I had to vent my feelings somewhere!

I think Chopra was not allowed because India dont allow dual nationalities.Probably was asked to quit England citizenship.I am not sure though.If thats the case then AIFF cant be blamed IMO.

AIFF should make the rules more flexible,just like Pakistan did so that Zesh Rahman could play for the Pakistan NT!

IndianGunner wrote:
AIFF should make the rules more flexible,just like Pakistan did so that Zesh Rahman could play for the Pakistan NT!

The thing is its not in the hands of AIFF .We dont allow dual nationalities and dont allow players who are not based in India to represent the country.TThe are govt policies and matter for Home ministry.I dont think it will change any time soon.TBH i cant find any fault with that.

The priority should it should be only those who want to play for India should be allowed to represent India not just someone who cant make in other country.Its not just for Football every sport follows the same guidelines.Otherwise we will be a joke like England cricket team.

IndianGunner wrote:

BeautifulGame wrote:

AnJl wrote:
this is also due to the fact that the majority of the people in the subcontinent are illiterate so they are blinded when it comes to seeing other things and only follow and believe what is good because of what they see on tv , i.e. different media outlets.

Sorry this is a retared comment to make.If u believe illiteracy is the main reason why Cricket is the most popular sport in India then u have no clue about what u are talking about.

TBH people in India are actually educated and not illiterate tats why they want their children to excel in education and become Engineers,Docs etc.,Had they been illiterate like you mentioned they would not mind their children entering sports field IMO!I fully agree with Beautiful Game

@beautiful game : did you read and understand my full comment before making a baseless attack?

@indiangunner : Im talking about people living below the poverty line , with most, if not all, of them being illiterate.

So when they see something on television or on a hoarding and see how popular they are , they believe that is the right way to go .

I shall repeat , COMMERCIALIZATION of cricket has led to the downfall of other sports in india and people, not knowing of other sports because of said commercialization , have blindly followed cricket into thinking it is the only worthwhile sport.

Otherwise , dont you think India should be a sporting super power ?

BeautifulGame wrote:

IndianGunner wrote:
AIFF should make the rules more flexible,just like Pakistan did so that Zesh Rahman could play for the Pakistan NT!

The thing is its not in the hands of AIFF .We dont allow dual nationalities and dont allow players who are not based in India to represent the country.TThe are govt policies and matter for Home ministry.I dont think it will change any time soon.TBH i cant find any fault with that.

The priority should it should be only those who want to play for India should be allowed to represent India not just someone who cant make in other country.Its not just for Football every sport follows the same guidelines.Otherwise we will be a joke like England cricket team.

That is not going to happen , not in the next 10 years , unless the sports minister wakes up .

Secondly , right now , the amount of NRI's we have who play football or any other sports and are given great training should be allowed to play for India , even if they hold dual citizenship .

Right now , the state of Indian football is in shambles and cant be picky.

Its not like anyone else cares about any other sport than cricket, because if they did, things would have a completely different outlook.

And simple , this is all India's fault .

If Indian football provided the necessary facilities and training and opportunity , then you would see people leaving their dual citizenship for the sake of playing football for India.

AnJl wrote:

IndianGunner wrote:

BeautifulGame wrote:

AnJl wrote:
this is also due to the fact that the majority of the people in the subcontinent are illiterate so they are blinded when it comes to seeing other things and only follow and believe what is good because of what they see on tv , i.e. different media outlets.

Sorry this is a retared comment to make.If u believe illiteracy is the main reason why Cricket is the most popular sport in India then u have no clue about what u are talking about.

TBH people in India are actually educated and not illiterate tats why they want their children to excel in education and become Engineers,Docs etc.,Had they been illiterate like you mentioned they would not mind their children entering sports field IMO!I fully agree with Beautiful Game

@beautiful game : did you read and understand my full comment before making a baseless attack?

@indiangunner : Im talking about people living below the poverty line , with most, if not all, of them being illiterate.

So when they see something on television or on a hoarding and see how popular they are , they believe that is the right way to go .

I shall repeat , COMMERCIALIZATION of cricket has led to the downfall of other sports in india and people, not knowing of other sports because of said commercialization , have blindly followed cricket into thinking it is the only worthwhile sport.

Otherwise , dont you think India should be a sporting super power ?

Only around 25% in India are below poverty line and nearly 75% people are above poverty line.And most above povertly line follow only cricket too.

Why do u think every sponspor pour into Cricket?why do u think every media love to promote cricket shows? Its because people here in India love cricket.

People arent fools to follow what media show but Media are intelligent enough to broadcast shows which people love.

Cricket has nothing to do with downfall of other sports.Its because we have incapable administrators unkike in cricket.

Noone blindly follows cricket more than anyone following football in Brazil.Its because people here love cricket more than any sport.

Football is the most popular sport in Brazil does that mean their people are fools? You argument is just ridiculous.

You do realize its not a sin to follow only a single sport.

Also India is a developing country.So parents will naturally look to secure the financial future of their children.Most will choose studies ahead of football or Hockey because its common sense.Nothing wrong with that.Only cricket gives u financially viable future unlike other sports.

There is enough talented footballers in the interior parts of the country to build a decent team.Unfortunately the administrators are incapable ones.It will only change with the economic development of the country.

Heck even cricket needed nearly 20 years after it became popular to tap into the talent in the interior parts of the country.

When economic development reaches these parts of the country most sports teams in India will improve regardless of India being cricket predominant country.

It has nothing do with Illiteracy or media commercialization u seem to believe.People arent fools everyone knows what is good for them.

AnJl wrote:

BeautifulGame wrote:

IndianGunner wrote:
AIFF should make the rules more flexible,just like Pakistan did so that Zesh Rahman could play for the Pakistan NT!

The thing is its not in the hands of AIFF .We dont allow dual nationalities and dont allow players who are not based in India to represent the country.TThe are govt policies and matter for Home ministry.I dont think it will change any time soon.TBH i cant find any fault with that.

The priority should it should be only those who want to play for India should be allowed to represent India not just someone who cant make in other country.Its not just for Football every sport follows the same guidelines.Otherwise we will be a joke like England cricket team.

That is not going to happen , not in the next 10 years , unless the sports minister wakes up .

Secondly , right now , the amount of NRI's we have who play football or any other sports and are given great training should be allowed to play for India , even if they hold dual citizenship .

Right now , the state of Indian football is in shambles and cant be picky.

Its not like anyone else cares about any other sport than cricket, because if they did, things would have a completely different outlook.

And simple , this is all India's fault .

If Indian football provided the necessary facilities and training and opportunity , then you would see people leaving their dual citizenship for the sake of playing football for India.

If u arent willing to become an indian citizen and quit other nationality then u shouldnt be allowed to be represent India.Thats the rules and there is nothing wrong with that.Having Indians wanting to play for India is more important than having a good team.


Agree with the shambles in other sports.Most organizations are in shambles because they have incapable administrators.Only BCCI is the capable sports administration in India.Its a lot to do with politics and ineptitude of the administrators.Its slowly changing with media exposure but it take the economic development to really take effect for other sports to develop.It will definitely take time but with the economic growth of the country the sporting field will grow too.