Former FIFA president Sepp Blatter once called India a "sleeping giant" of soccer, but the sport is mired in fresh crisis in the country and faces problems from the top down to grassroots.
The men's national team is without a coach and the Indian Super League (ISL) — India's top competition — is in danger of collapsing over a dispute between the federation and its commercial partner.
"Everybody in the Indian football ecosystem is worried, hurt, scared about the uncertainty we are faced with," Sunil Chhetri, the celebrated veteran striker, wrote on X about the fate of the ISL.
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