AIFF President Forms Committee for Talks with India Head Coach Igor Stimac

On Friday, March 29, 2024, Mr. Kalyan Chaubey, the President of AIFF, held a virtual meeting with senior Federation members.

The purpose was to discuss the recommendations made by the Technical Committee following India’s recent performance in the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 Preliminary Joint Qualifiers Round 2 matches against Afghanistan.

Read More: Indian Women’s Team Goalkeeper, Panthoi Chanu Joins Australian Club Metro United

AIFF President Forms Committee to Address Head Coach Stimac’s Future Amidst Concerns

The AIFF President and its members also acknowledged certain remarks made by India’s head coach, Igor Stimac, in the media regarding his future with the team post the Round 2 qualifiers. This acknowledgment occurred during a meeting attended by 14 senior Federation members.

After considering all the recommendations and suggestions from the members, the AIFF President has established a five-member committee. This committee comprises Mr. N.A. Haris, Vice President of AIFF; Mr. Menla Ethenpa, Member of the Executive Committee and Chairperson of the Finance Committee; Mr. Anilkumar Prabhakaran, Member of the Executive Committee and Chairperson of the Competitions Committee; Mr. I/M. Vijayan, Member of the Executive Committee and Chairperson of the Technical Committee; and Mr. Climax Lawrence, Member of the Executive Committee and Technical Committee.

The newly formed committee has been tasked by the AIFF President to engage in discussions with the India head coach and seek further clarification on the matter.

Previously, on Thursday, the Technical Committee convened under the chairmanship of Mr. Vijayan. During this meeting, the committee members—Mrs. Pinky Bompal Magar, Mr. Shabbir Ali, Mr. Climax Lawrence, Mr. Victor Amalraj, and Mr. Santosh Singh—expressed their disappointment over India’s performance. They recommended that discussions should be held with the head coach before the upcoming two World Cup qualifiers against Kuwait (June 6) and Qatar (June 11).

India participated in two World Cup qualifiers against Afghanistan during the March FIFA International Window. The first match, held in Abha, Saudi Arabia, ended in a draw, while the second match in Guwahati resulted in a 1-2 defeat for India against the team ranked 158th in the world.

AIFF Ex-Co Member Accused of Physically Assaulting Women Footballers

In Panaji, two female footballers from Khad FC have reported that Deepak Sharma, an executive committee member of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), physically assaulted them in a hotel room during the current Indian Women’s League (IWL) 2 in Goa. The two players lodged their complaints with the AIFF’s competitions committee on Friday, stating that the assault occurred on Thursday night.

“Yesterday (Thursday), as the dinner was over, we went to our rooms to boil eggs.”

The two players stated in their complaint, supported by three witnesses, that Deepak Sharma became enraged due to a certain reason and forcefully entered their room. They alleged that he proceeded to slap and physically assault them.

The Himachal Pradesh-based club, participating in IWL 2 in Goa, has Sharma serving as the general secretary of the Himachal Pradesh Football Association and as the deputy chairman of the AIFF’s competitions committee.

According to the players, Sharma was frequently intoxicated and carried alcohol during the team’s journey from Himachal to Delhi before the league. They mentioned witnessing him drinking in their presence.

Feeling fearful for their safety, the players sought intervention. This led the Goa Football Association (GFA) to take action. GFA officials visited the team hotel, where the team manager provided a written assurance guaranteeing the players’ safety.

“I take responsibility for all the girls and will drop the players safely at their homes. Nothing will go wrong,” manager Nanalita Sharma told GFA.

Late on Friday night, GFA submitted a written intimation to the Mapusa police, informing them that “some girls were assaulted by Deepak Sharma, one of the accompanying members of the team, who was allegedly in an inebriated condition.”

AIFF officials have verified the receipt of the complaint and stated that it has been promptly forwarded to its safety and safeguarding officer for necessary action.

Valanka Alemao, chairperson of the AIFF women’s football committee, expressed her immediate reaction upon viewing the complaint copy, emphasizing that such incidents cannot be tolerated. She assured that the AIFF will handle the matter appropriately.

“I have just seen the complaint copy and am rushing to see the team at the hotel. Such things cannot be tolerated. The AIFF will deal with this accordingly,” said Valanka Alemao.

In Goa, five teams are participating in IWL 2, with the final matches scheduled for Saturday.

Khad FC, despite losing all three of their previous games, will face City Bahadurgarh FC in their last match. City Bahadurgarh FC is expected to field only eight players due to twelve of them unexpectedly leaving to participate in the Haryana State Senior Women’s Championship.

FC Tuem from Goa and SAG Football Academy from Gujarat have both secured qualification for the next stage.