60-521: Syed Abdul Rahim (17 August 1909 – 11 June 1963), popularly known as Rahim Saab , was an Indian football coach and manager of the India national team from 1950 until his death in 1963, and a former player. He is regarded as the architect of modern Indian football. A teacher by profession, he was a strong motivator and his tenure as a coach is regarded as the "golden age" of football in India. Under his stewardship,
120-515: A 2–1 defeat, with Sarangapani Raman scoring the lone goal for India. India then returned to the Olympics four years later where they took on Yugoslavia in the preliminary rounds. The team suffered a 10–1 defeat, India's largest margin of defeat in a competitive match, and were knocked out. Four years later, during the 1956 Olympics, India managed to reach the semi-finals and finish fourth. After India's first round opponents, Hungary , withdrew from
180-470: A cup of tea but our hard practice, a will to succeed and excellent coaching from the late Rahim Saheb enabled us to become a successful team". Rahim managed Hyderabad football team in Santosh Trophy , known as the senior national championships. He guided the team clinching two consecutive titles in 1956–57 and 1957–58, defeating the same team, Bombay , in finals. At the 1958–59 edition, Hyderabad were on
240-560: A gift from you tomorrow...the gold medal ' ). When Indian national coach Alberto Fernando had gone to a workshop in Brazil in 1964, he said: What I learnt from Rahim in 1956 is being taught now in Brazil. Verily, he was a football prophet. Former Indian international Mohammed Zulfiqaruddin said about Rahim, as: He was a master at work. He made the Indian football team a formidable unit. He had
300-599: A while, representing Qamar Club, which was then considered to be one of the best teams in the local league. Rahim also played for the Dutch Amateur League club HSV Hoek in the Netherlands, before going on to become a manager. When playing domestic football, Rahim along with legendary Indian sports pioneer Syed Mohammad Hadi , became associated with activities related to football organization in Hyderabad State. He
360-594: Is affiliated with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and the worldwide football governing body FIFA . The India national football team has entered the regional Asian Cup competition but has never competed in a World Cup . The India women's national football team has also played in competitions, and has its own inter-state and state competitions. Youth football is administered by the Sports Authority of India . The India national football team
420-549: Is an Indian football team representing Andhra Pradesh in Indian state football competitions including the Santosh Trophy . The team has appeared in the Santosh Trophy finals twice, winning the trophy once. Prior to 1959, the team competed as Andhra football team. The Hyderabad Football Association merged with the Andhra Football Association to establish the combined team. They have failed to qualify for
480-646: Is governed by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and is a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Since 1948, the AIFF has been affiliated with FIFA , the international governing body for world football. In 1954, the AIFF became one of the founding members of the AFC. The following list includes the performance of all of India's national teams at major competitions. The Indian senior national team had several successes during their initial years but
540-559: Is no longer considered one of the best in Asia. The national team's highest achievement is winning two gold medals at the Asian Games. The women's national team was started in the 1970s; they were twice runners-up in the Women's Asian Cup in the early 1980s. After the AIFF took charge of the team, they began to suffer massive defeats and declined in the late 2000s. In the late 2010s, the AIFF revived
600-429: Is now. 1951–1962 is widely considered the "golden age" of Indian football. In this period, the national team won numerous titles under the coaching of Syed Abdul Rahim . India won the gold medal in the first Asian Games in 1951 , beating Iran by one goal. In 1956, no longer playing barefoot, India reached the semi-final in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics , becoming the first Asian country to do so and ranking fourth in
660-445: Is one of the most popular sports in India . The 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the first FIFA event the country hosted. It was called the most successful FIFA U-17 World Cup ever, with a record-breaking attendance of 1,347,133, exceeding China 's record of 1,230,976 from 1985. India also hosted the 2022 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup and bid to host the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup . The Indian national football team qualified for
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#1732876197547720-402: Is the first time ever India qualified consecutively for the continental championship. India competed in four straight Olympic football tournaments between 1948 and 1960. Their sole 1948 Olympics match against France was also India's first ever international match since the country gained independence in 1947. During the match, a majority of the Indian side played barefoot. The match ended in
780-500: Is the top league, followed by I-League , I-League 2 and I-League 3 . I-League 3 currently acts as a final round for the top teams in the state leagues that are nominated by state football associations . India has several cup tournaments, including the Durand Cup , Super Cup and IFA Shield . The competitions currently active in Indian football in the 2023–24 season . The competitions currently active in Indian football in
840-633: The 1950 FIFA World Cup but did not participate. British soldiers introduced football into India in the mid-nineteenth century. Games were initially played between army teams but clubs were soon set up around the country. In 1872, Calcutta FC was the first football club to be established, though the side may have originated as a rugby club that switched codes as late as 1894. Other early clubs include Dalhousie AC , Traders Club and Naval Volunteers Club. Several other football clubs such as Sovabazar, Mohun Bagan and Aryan Club were established in Calcutta in
900-532: The 1954 Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament . During Rahim's tenure, the Indian football team enjoyed a great deal of success. Apart from winning the Asian games in 1951 and 1962 , India also reached the semi-finals of the 1956 Melbourne Olympics which is still considered India's greatest ever achievement in football. Under his coaching at that tournament, players like Neville D'Souza , Samar Banerjee , P. K. Banerjee , J. Krishnaswamy achieved fame worldwide. At
960-549: The 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome , India lost to Hungary 2–1 in their first game, with Balaram scoring the consolation goal in the 79th minute. India almost upset 1958 FIFA World Cup semi-finalists France few days later, in which Balaram's goal gave the lead to India but a mistake from Ram Bahadur Thapa denied India a famous victory. Rahim's last success was at the 1962 Asian games in Jakarta , where India won gold, beating South Korea in
1020-468: The 2015 edition . India beat Thailand by 4–1, their biggest-ever win at the Asia Cup and their first win in 55 years. Nevertheless, they lost both of their next two group matches against UAE and Bahrain by 0−2 and 0−1 respectively and finished at the bottom of the group, thus failing to move to the knockout stage. Football in India is administered by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) , which
1080-815: The 2023–24 season . As of 2023 , few of India's national football stadiums meet current world standards. The largest football stadiums in India are the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata with a seating capacity of 68,000 and the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi with a capacity of over 60,000. The Barabati Stadium in Cuttack and Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar are major arenas for football events in Odisha . In Sikkim,
1140-589: The COTIF cup, as well as Iraq U-16 , the defending champions of the AFC U-16 Championship (now the AFC U-17 Championship), by 1–0. The U-16 team qualified for the 2018 AFC U-16 Championship , where they came close to qualifying for the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup , but lost to South Korea by a single goal in the quarterfinal. The Indian national team qualified for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup after missing
1200-596: The FIFA U-17 World Cup in front of 47,000 people against the United States, losing the match 0–3. India played their second match against Colombia. In the 82nd minute, Jeakson Singh became the first Indian goal scorer in the finals of a FIFA-organised tournament. For the third match of the group stage, India played Ghana, losing the match 4–0 and finishing at the bottom of Group A. In 2018 Indian youth football teams made history by defeating Argentina U-20 2–1 in
1260-942: The Fatorda Stadium in Goa , the Kaloor International Stadium in Kochi , the Municipal Corporation Stadium in Kozhikode , the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Guwahati and the EKA Arena in Ahmedabad . There are hundreds of other stadiums in the country. The following stadiums are affiliated by All India Football Federation . Note. † denotes stadiums that have hosted international football matches. The Nehru Cup
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#17328761975471320-641: The 1890s. Calcutta was then the capital of British India and soon became the hub of football. Tournaments like the Gladstone Cup , the Trades Cup and the Cooch Behar Cup were started around this time. The Durand Cup and IFA Shield were both started in the late nineteenth century. The first Indian team to achieve success was Sovabazar Club, which won the Trades Cup in 1892. Mohun Bagan Athletic Club , which
1380-646: The 1950 FIFA World Cup, India did not enter the qualifying rounds of the tournament between 1954 and 1982 . Since the 1986 qualifiers , with the exception of the 1990 edition of the tournament, the team participated in World Cup qualification, but has yet to qualify for the finals again. India has qualified for the AFC Asian Cup five times. The team played their first Asian Cup in 1964 . The team managed to qualify following other nations' refusal to play against India due to political reasons. India managed to finish
1440-597: The 1990s, the women's team rapidly declined and a series of defeats followed. In 2009, FIFA delisted the Indian women's team from the world rankings. In August 2007, the Indian national team won the Nehru Cup for the first time, beating Syria 1–0. In August of the following year, India defeated Tajikistan 4–1 to win the AFC Challenge Cup and qualified for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. In August 2009, India again won
1500-941: The 30,000-capacity Paljor Stadium in Gangtok is famous as one of the most beautiful stadiums in the world because of its backdrop of the Himalayas. The main stadium in Shillong is the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium with a capacity of 30,000 standing. Both the Paljor and the JLN in Shillong have been renovated with artificial playing surfaces . Some other important stadiums are the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune , Barasat Stadium in Barasat ,
1560-521: The All India Football Federation. [REDACTED] International football in India generally takes place between September and November according to FIFA men's match calendar, and between February-July/October-December for women. The Indian national football team has also provided some of the greatest players, the example of which is Sunil Chhetri . As of 2023 , India has four national-level leagues. The Indian Super League
1620-527: The India national team earned superiority in both technical qualities and tactical innovations, and got the nickname "Brazil of Asia". They went on to win gold medals in Asian Games of—( 1951-Delhi and 1962-Jakarta ), played semi-finals of the Summer Olympics —( 1956-Melbourne ) making India the first ever Asian country to achieve this place, win the titles of Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament for
1680-477: The Indian team in the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers. After going first in their AFC Challenge Cup group, Houghton was replaced by Wim Koevermans . The India national under-23 football team won the first round of the 2012 Olympics qualifiers against Myanmar but were eliminated by Qatar. India played their next official matches against United Arab Emirates in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, which India lost on aggregate 5–2. In 2014, India hosted
1740-517: The Indian team was a special one as they became the first ever Asian Games gold medalists in football. Though the next two tournaments proved to be less successful for the team, they bounced back by winning gold at the 1962 Asian games by defeating the Asian Cup winners South Korea. The team failed to defend their title in 1966 and went on to claim the bronze medal in 1970 . Andhra Pradesh football team The Andhra Pradesh football team
1800-471: The Nehru Cup, beating Syria on penalties (6–5). In January 2011, India played in the 2011 Asian Cup , the country's first Asian Cup for 24 years. India was eliminated in the group stage, which included South Korea , Australia , and Bahrain . Since the 2011 Asian Cup, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has been working to improve Indian football. They allowed former coach Bob Houghton to coach
1860-466: The World Cup. The AIFF had organised training is Calcutta for the 1950 World Cup and the board organised a series of meetings relating to India's participation but was not able to reach a decision. One to two weeks before the World Cup, the AIFF resorted to coming up with excuses to abandon the World Cup trip. This did not face much criticism in 1948 because the FIFA World Cup was not as popular as it
Syed Abdul Rahim - Misplaced Pages Continue
1920-575: The available resources, he made the best out of them by conducting non-dribbling and weaker leg (the players supposedly play with their weaker foot) tournaments to improve one-touch play . Rahim introduced the classic 4–2–4 formation in Indian football team much before Brazil popularised it in the 1958 World Cup . The 1962 Asian Games was Rahim's final major tournament, winning a 2–1 victory over South Korea . Before that final, he famously said to his players, "Kal aap logon se mujhe ek tohfa chahiye...kal aap sona jitlo" ( lit. ' I want
1980-482: The college. After his journey as a teacher, Rahim returned to his college to complete his arts degree. Thereafter, he worked as the teacher successively in Kachiguda Middle School, Urdu Sharif School, Darul-ul-Uloom High School and Chaderghat High School. He then got a diploma in physical education and took charge of sports in the last two schools he served as teacher. Rahim was a professional footballer for
2040-415: The early 1960s caused the Indian national team to gradually lose their position as a top Asian team. India has not qualified for the Olympics since 1960. India qualified for their first Asian Cup in 1964 but failed to win the title. In an international tournament at the 1970 Asian Games, India won the bronze medal after defeating Japan 1–0. The Indian national team qualified for the 1984 AFC Asian Cup for
2100-488: The expenses required in getting the team to Brazil . But this reason was untrue because FIFA was ready to give money to India (AIFF) for their trip to Brazil. Other reasons cited for why India withdrew include FIFA not allowing Indian players to play in the tournament barefoot and the All India Football Federation not considering the FIFA World Cup an important tournament compared to the Olympics . After withdrawing from
2160-452: The finals in front of a crowd of 100,000. He is also credited for bringing up and nurturing Indian talents during his tenure, including Peter Thangaraj , Nikhil Nandy, Kesto Pal, Chuni Goswami , Jarnail Singh , Tulsidas Balaram , Sheikh Abdul Latif , Mariappa Kempaiah , Dharmalingam Kannan , Hussain Ahmed , Mohammed Rahmatullah , Yousuf Khan, Arun Ghosh, Nikhil Nandy, and Amal Dutta . Rahim
2220-497: The financial barrier was solved as state associations provided financial help to the AIFF and that FIFA also promised to provide money. FIFA had imposed a rule banning barefoot play following the 1948 Olympics where India had played barefoot. According to then-captain Shailen Manna , this story was circulated to justify the AIFF's decision to not participate. Since 1950, the Indian national team has not come close to qualifying for
2280-502: The first Unity World Cup in Goa , Hyderabad and Bangalore . India has participated in and hosted the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup tournament. This was the first time a team representing India participated in the finals of a FIFA-organised world tournament. India was placed in Group A along with the United States , Ghana and Colombia . On 6 October 2017, India played their first match in
2340-525: The first Indian to appear with the English Football League club Arsenal in 1930. India qualified by default for the 1950 FIFA World Cup in Brazil because all of their scheduled opponents withdrew. India did not compete in the tournament. It was not because of a lack of financial assistance, particularly to purchase tickets for the sea journey, or because the team were not allowed to play barefoot. According to sports journalist Jaydeep Basu ,
2400-609: The first time since 1964 but failed to qualify for the knockout stage after finishing last in their group of five teams. The Indian youth team jointly won the Youth Asian Cup with Iran in 1974 , the first and only title for India at the youth level. In club football, on 24 September 1977, Mohun Bagan held onto a 2–2 draw at the Eden Gardens stadium in Calcutta, against a Pelé -led New York Cosmos . Mohun Bagan would have won
2460-620: The grave . In memory of Rahim, the I-League "Best Coach Award" is renamed as "Syed Abdul Rahim Award", given to the best coach in each season by the All India Football Federation (AIFF). A biopic on Rahim named Maidaan , directed by Amit Sharma , with Ajay Devgn as Rahim in lead role, was released theatrically on Eid al-Fitr 2024. Hyderabad City Police India Hyderabad State Cited sources Bibliography Other sources Football in India Association football
Syed Abdul Rahim - Misplaced Pages Continue
2520-432: The group in last place, drawing once. India have since failed to qualify for another Olympic games. India competed in eleven Asian Games, starting from 1951 to 1998 , except the 1990 and 1994 editions. In 1951 Asian Games India won their first match against Indonesia in the first round and then defeated Japan in semi-final and went on to win against Iran in the final in front of the home crowd. The achievement of
2580-719: The merger, Rahim was elected secretary of APFA, and became involved in developing infrastructure of the game in both Hyderabad and Secunderabad. Rahim played an influential role behind a compact development of football in Hyderabad in the 1950s, when five organized clubs were competing, fifteen thousand footballers were registered, and nearly forty qualified referees came up in the state. A lover of Hyderabadi one-touch football, he later scouted young players such as Tulsidas Balaram , from Secundrabad League while visiting local matches as chief guest. In 1950, Rahim joined Hyderabad City Police Club as coach. He succeeded Norbert Andrew Fruvall for
2640-420: The post. He managed the team from 1950 until his death in 1963. The Hyderabadi club won five consecutive Rovers Cups during his tenure from 1950 to 1955. He also took his team to five Durand Cup finals, winning three of them. One of the finest players of that team, Muhammad Noor , recalled the training session years under Rahim as: "Often at practice we had just one football and for refreshments afterwards just
2700-529: The team that toured Ceylon in 1949. Rahim made the Indian team prominent during the "golden era" of Indian football , became one of the best teams in Asia . In March 1951, at the inaugural 1951 Asian Games in New Delhi , Rahim helped India in winning the gold medal. They defeated Iran 1–0 in the gold medal match to gain their first trophy, as Sheoo Mewalal finished the tournament as top scorer. In 1954, noted British manager Bert Flatley became Rahim's assistant at
2760-424: The team to empower women's football and the team performed well in a large number of friendlies. The AIFF won the hosting bid for the 2022 AFC Women's Asian Cup . Includes U-19 and U-18 teams' performance. Includes U-16 and U-15 teams' performance. Includes U-19 and U-18 teams' performance. Includes U-16 and U-15 teams' performance. There are currently 36 state associations and 2 affiliates associations with
2820-483: The tie had it not been for a controversial penalty awarded to the visiting team that ensured the draw. The next day, the newspaper Ananda Bazar Patrika described Goutam Sarkar as "India's very own Beckenbaur". The Indian women's team as they began playing in the 1970s. In 1975, their first manager was Sushil Bhattacharya . The Indian women's team were runners-up in the AFC Women's Asian Cup in 1980 and 1983 . In
2880-491: The tournament as runners-up to hosts Israel , with Inder Singh finishing as joint top-scorer. Since then, India has failed to progress beyond the first round of the Asian Cup, with their participation at the 1984 and 2011 Asian Cups, and most recently the 2019 Asian Cup . In June 2022, India qualified for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup after winning all the matches in the third round of 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification . This
2940-431: The tournament, the team played against hosts Australia in the quarter-finals. A Neville D'Souza hat-trick, the first by an Asian footballer in the Olympics, helped India win 4–2. However, in the semi-finals, India once again suffered defeat against Yugoslavia, going down 4–1. In the bronze medal match, India were defeated 3–0 by Bulgaria . In 1960, India competed in Group D with Hungary, France and Peru . India ended
3000-591: The tournament. In 1962, India again won the gold in the Asian Games at Jakarta , defeating South Korea 2–1. India also won the Merdeka Cup and the Asian Quadrangular Football Tournament , while East Bengal garnered good reviews after touring Romania. Also in 1951, India achieved their highest World Football Elo Rating of 31. According to former FIFA president Sepp Blatter , India is "the sleeping giant of world football". Rahim's death in
3060-454: The uncanny ability of spotting talent and turning them into solid players. But he was a strict disciplinarian. Rahim was popularly known as 'Maulvi Sahib' due to his gentleman gesture and tireless works and dedications in developing football at that time. He went to the Nizam College, and later, was part of its football section. Rahim was married to Saira Rahim. Their son Syed Shahid Hakim
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#17328761975473120-458: The verge of a hat-trick of Santosh Trophy titles in Madras , but went down 5–2 to Services in quarter-finals. Most of the members of his Hyderabad City Police team, represented Hyderabad in the tournament. He became manager of the India national football team in 1950, the same year, India had not gone to the 1950 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Rahim's first assignment as the coach of India was to train
3180-582: The years of—( 1952-Colombo and 1954-Calcutta and came runners-up in Pestabola Merdeka —( 1959 Kuala Lumpur ). Rahim was born on 17 August 1909 in Hyderabad , Hyderabad State , British India . In his early years, he worked as a school teacher. After taking football seriously, Rahim represented the football team of Osmania University , from where he graduated. He also played for a team named "Eleven Hunters", consisting of then enrolled and former students of
3240-614: Was a former professional football player, who represented India at the 1960 Summer Olympics . Hakim also worked as a FIFA official, a squadron leader in the Indian Air Force , and a referee. He later managed the national team like his father, and was a recipient of the Dhyan Chand Award . Rahim died of lung cancer on 12 June 1963 after being bed-ridden for six months. A former Indian football player Fortunato Franco said about "Rahim Saab"; With him he took Indian Football to
3300-462: Was an international invitational association football tournament organised by the AIFF and named after the First Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru . The Tri-Nation Series is a three-team football tournament organised by the AIFF. The first edition was held in 2017. The Intercontinental Cup is a four-team association football tournament organised by the AIFF. The first edition
3360-440: Was established in Calcutta in 1893 but had no Indians on its board until the 1930s. The All India Football Federation (AIFF), the national governing body of football in India, was formed in 1937 but did not become affiliated with FIFA until at least a decade later. India insisted on playing barefoot whereas other national sides wore boots. Footballer Jyotish Chandra Guha brought global attention to Indian football when he became
3420-587: Was held in 2018. A red box around the year indicates tournaments played within India India has never played in the finals of the FIFA World Cup . After gaining independence in 1947, India managed to qualify for the World Cup held in 1950 . This was due to Myanmar , Indonesia , and the Philippines withdrawing from qualification round . However, prior to the start of the tournament, India withdrew due to
3480-413: Was one of the founding members of Hyderabad Football Association (HFA), incorporated in 1939. In 1943, Rahim was elected secretary of HFA, while Ghulam Muhammad was elected as the first President in 1942. During the tenure of then AIFF vice-president Shiv Kumar Lal, both Andhra (incepted later) and Hyderabad Football Associations were merged to form Andhra Pradesh Football Association (APFA). Soon after
3540-472: Was set up in modern-day West Bengal in 1889, became famous in 1911 when it became the first Indian team to win the IFA Shield , a tournament previously won only by British teams based in India. They defeated East Yorkshire Regiment 2–1 in the tournament's final in a victory that is still regarded as one of the greatest win by an Indian football team before independence. The Indian Football Association (IFA)
3600-414: Was succeeded by English coach Harry Wright in 1964, who led the side to the runners-up spot in the 1964 Asian Cup . Rahim is considered to be the greatest football coach India has ever produced. His tenure is considered as a "Golden age" of Indian football. Rahim was a teacher in his early career and coached Hyderabad City Police FC , which made him a strict disciplinarian and a good tactician. Utilizing
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