THE THIRD EDITION of Indian Super League is up and roaring, and you know what that means: it's 'Block Season' for Indian football clubs. From October to December, AIFF stops organizing any club competition to allow the private tournament an exclusive dance under the spotlights. Even the Indian national team does not remain the AIFF's priority; the international friendly dates remain blank on the calendar.
It's a perfect showcase of a homegenized, puffed up "football league" that does not tolerate any distraction as it relentlessly serves football blessed by Bollywood and cricket stars every night, as the real clubs are sidelined, playing obscure localized tournaments with broken teams or retreating to the shadows until January.
But sometimes this seamless narrative is broken by international fixtures. Last year, the national team was playing in the World Cup Qualifiers, and the ISL franchises had to release players for those matches not without protests and the forceful cancellation of a preparatory camp. Star players went missing, challenging the idea of ISL's monopoly, and the tournament received criticism for having a match on the same day as a national team fixture.
This time, things are arguably worse. Because a club, of all things - a real one that plays in the I-League - is threatening to go over and above the entire tournament with its on-field achievement and spectacle. Bengaluru FC, the reigning champions of India, are in the AFC Cup semi-finals, playing against the defending champions, and they will go into the second leg of the mega continental fixture with an advantage over their opponents.
Suddenly, ISL is no longer the biggest thing happening in Indian football during the 'Block Season'. An Indian club is on the verge of making a major dent in Asian football by playing in the AFC Cup final for the first time: and it's cause enough for the entire football circuit to stop and take notice.
The match itself isn't going to be a gala affair like ISL. There won't be film stars in the stands waving at the fans. There won't be fireworks set up strategically around the pitch. It's just a red-blooded pure football match without a fraction of the glamour of the ISL, but when it comes to the scheme of things, its importance supersedes that of the entire ISL. Why? Here's why...