Indian Football Team To Miss Out On Asian Games? New Ministry Diktat Raises Questions

Athletes with a “real chance of winning medals” will be the sole candidates for inclusion, the Sports Ministry announced as it introduced a stringent selection criteria for the 2026 Asian Games. This focuses

on continental rankings and bars additional coaches and support staff, even at no cost to the government.

The five-page document uploaded on the ministry’s website on Wednesday specifies that only those ranked in the top six in individual events and top eight in team sports at the Asian level will be eligible for nomination from the national federations.

The Asian Games will be held in Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4 next year.

“The aim is to ensure that only athletes with a real chance of winning medals are considered for participation in multidisciplinary sports events,” stated the ministry, tightening a process previously criticised for being haphazard and unclear.

“If it comes to the attention of the Ministry and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) that the goal is merely participation and not medal-winning, the names of such sportspersons and teams will not be approved, after giving proper justification,” it stated.

“Only those sportspersons, coaches, and support staff cleared at government cost will be part of the contingent, and no additional sportspersons, coaches, or support staff will be included even at no cost to the government,” it added, addressing an often contentious issue when athletes request their personal coaches and support staff at personal cost.

The tough criteria would make it challenging for the Indian football team to participate, as it is ranked 24th in Asia by FIFA.

India have won two gold medals at the Asian Games, back in 1951 and 1962. They won bronze in 1970 and that was the last medal. India’s last senior team participation was back in 1998 when they lost all their Round 2 matches. India featured in the 2022 edition of the tournament, playing U23 men, where they lost in the Round of 16 to Saudi Arabia.

The selection criteria also apply to the Commonwealth Games (July-August, 2026), Para Asian Games, Asian Indoor Games, Asian Beach Games, Youth Olympics, Asian Youth Games and the Commonwealth Youth Games.

Performances from the past 12 months will form the basis of selection.

However, the new policy excludes the Olympics and other international competitions where athlete or team participation is determined by qualification standards set by the respective international federations.

The National Sports Federation (NSF) will be eligible to nominate an athlete if the athlete has matched or bettered the sixth-place performance from the last Asian Games at a competition recognised by the international sports federation for that sport, held within the 12 months preceding the upcoming Asian Games.

For events not contested at the last Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, the criteria would be a top-six finish at the Senior Asian Championships of that discipline event “within 12 months preceding the upcoming Asian Games”.

The ministry warned that if an Asian Championship is held at “irregular intervals” and the “competition standard is low”, it would consider it an attempt to “circumvent rules”.

“…such cases will not be recommended, particularly if the competition standard is low or if top nations expected to participate in the forthcoming Asian Games were absent from the said competition,” it asserted.

Giving details, the ministry said that if an Asian Championship features fewer than six teams, the Indian team must be in the top two to be eligible for Asian Games selection. For continental competitions featuring six to 12 teams, the Indian team must be in the top four for selection.

“Sports where Asian Championships are held biennially and no edition has occurred in the last 12 months, but was conducted within the preceding 24 months, the most recent edition within that 24-month window will be considered.

“Asian Championships held beyond 24 months from the date of the Asian Games shall not be considered for eligibility purposes,” it said.

For team sports, the placement among Asian nations will be derived from the latest global rankings.

The ministry said the new guidelines aim to establish a “transparent and equitable framework”.

The criteria include a relaxation clause allowing the Ministry to recommend participants who don’t meet the set criteria based on the “opinion of experts in specific sports or SAI”.

India recorded their best-ever Asiad performance at the Hangzhou Games in 2023, securing 106 medals, including 28 gold.

(With PTI Inputs)