India is loser, AIFF scoring the own-goal of corruption
FOOTBALL: FIFA official slams unprofessional, corrupt system

The typical message from Indian football administrators is that the road to world domination is only a couple of steps away. For a more realistic comment on the state of Indian football, where corruption and lack of professionalism go hand in hand, listen to Urs Zanitti.
"It's a scandal from an outsider's point of view", Zanitti, Director of FIFA's GOAL development programme, says. "FIFA's job is to provide the money but, in countries like India, we are forced to deal directly with the people to whom the money is paid eventually."
Zanitti, in town last week for FIFA's interaction with the All-India Football Federation, was scathing in his indictment of the state of the game here.
He pointed to the FIFA House project - the plan to build a permanent office, and much more, for the AIFF in New Delhi's Dwarka area. "We are dealing directly with the architects and contractors, because nothing seems to get done otherwise. It was supposed to have been built a year or so ago, but it's still not in functioning condition", Zanitti said.
Put the same question to Asian Football Confederation chief Peter Velappan and you get positive spin. "We have some short-term projects that include recruitment and training of professional administrators. We will send people to India periodically to check on things and, with the help of the AIFF, we feel we could bring in more professionalism in the administration."
Is the problem specific to India, you ask Zanitti, and he replies, "Well, no. These are problems that come up in countries like Pakistan, India and a couple of other places in Asia and Africa. We have had to cancel our programmes in two Asian countries - Macau and Lebanon - because no one there seems interested in doing anything. The problem is basically that the administration in these countries is practically non-existent and therefore, issues like land (at Dwarka) never get solved."
Because Zanitti mentions India, Pakistan and "some African countries" in the same breath, an obvious parallel is drawn to the much-publicised list of ‘Most Corrupt Countries', where India, Pakistan and about five African nations occupy berths in the top ten. However, Zanitti refuses to be drawn into the discussion and only says, "We know there is corruption, but I can't talk specifically about India, because for corruption, you need money. And, from where I stand, the AIFF has no money."
His experience with the AIFF top brass has been mixed. "They seem interested enough but where's the administration? Where are the administrators? You have some people in Delhi. Some in Kolkata. Some in Goa. There are no people. The human resource is very poor. The financial resources are poor also, but that's where we come in. But here we need to take part in creating the human resource also."
The AIFF, he's adamant, cannot be spoonfed any longer. He acknowledges that things are moving but regrets the pace. "The AIFF will function from Delhi and that's a start. At least everything is centralised. Now you have to recruit the right people and though people in the AIFF are not unqualified, they need to do things right from now on. Your product has been identified for you and the infrastructure has been provided. Now you need to sell it."
His point made, forcefully and precisely, Zanitti signs off. With the promise of "monitoring things", offering the hope that football will slowly, but surely, get out of the rut it is firmly stuck in.