Kolkata, March 15 – AIFF Deputy Secretary General M Satyanarayan revealed that the federation arranged replacement kits for the Indian women's football team within seven hours after the initial set sent for the AFC Women's Asian Cup in Australia had issues.
"The AIFF faced criticism after the kit initially sent to the women's team for the AFC Asian Cup in Australia had problems. We replaced it with high-quality kits within seven hours, but this wasn't highlighted in the media," said Satyanarayan at RevSportz Trailblazers 4.0.
He also spoke about the growing progress of Indian women's football, pointing out that the national team could be within reach of qualifying for the FIFA Women's World Cup following strong performances across age groups.
"Around 2025 was a significant year for women's football in India, with teams across age groups, up to the senior level, qualifying for the AFC Women's Asian Cup. This just shows that we are two to three wins away from qualifying for the World Cup," he said.
Addressing the situation in men's football, Satyanarayan added that structural reforms would take time to show results.
"Once the National Sports Governance Act is implemented, we will not have these court cases," he said. "Sports administrators will have the time to govern rather than running to court."
The session, moderated by Debasis Sen and Rahul Giri, also featured Inter Kashi president Prithwijit Das, Jamshedpur FC CEO Mukul Choudhari, and IFA secretary Anirban Dutta, who shared their perspectives on the development of football across different regions and levels in the country.
Speaking about the potential of football in Uttar Pradesh, Das said, "I believe the opportunities for football in Uttar Pradesh are huge. The only way to build the ecosystem is to have more clubs."
Choudhari highlighted the impact of the Indian Super League on football infrastructure in the country.
"What the ISL has done is give football infrastructure a facelift," he noted.
Meanwhile, Dutta acknowledged the decline in representation from Bengal in the national team and stressed the need for change at the grassroots level.
"The first step towards change is to accept reality. We are living in a state of complacency. For the past few years, we have neglected youth development. We have been bringing in changes," he said.