Panaji:All India Football Federation (AIFF) are hoping to get an invitation to participate in Copa America after not being able to do so in the previous edition due to scheduling issues.
The South American Football Championship, which was deferred last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, is slated to kick off on June 11.
Interestingly, India had a shot to play alongside football giants like Brazil and Argentina, after they were referred by Australia to replace them as one of the participants in the prestigious event.
However, much to the anguish of Indian football fans, AIFF were not able to confirm their availability due to the postponement of Fifa World Cup qualifiers from March-April to June by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
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“There were two Asian teams, Qatar and Australia, invited for Copa America. Australia couldn’t make it due to various commitments. They actually then spoke to India and to CONMEBOL (South American Football Confederation), who were excited to get India. They were very interested in having us play,” AIFF general secretary Kushal Das was quoted as saying by a leading Indian daily.
“There were scheduling issues. The Copa America is in June and we were trying to see if the qualifiers could be played earlier in March/April. But it didn’t work out for some of the countries (in the group) like Bangladesh and Afghanistan.
“Had the qualifiers been in March or April, it would have been a fantastic experience for our team. It’s a very difficult tournament, but for a young squad, this is what they require. I hope, as the organizers have indicated that they are interested in India, we can make it happen in the future,” said Das.
Speaking about the same, head coach Igor Stimac also expressed his excitement about the prospects of Indian footballers playing alongside some of the world’s greatest players like Lionel Messi, Neymar, Luis Suarez and James Rodriguez.
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“We were all really excited. There was a chance for us to go there, instead of Australia. This would have been a wonderful experience. In the future, hopefully, we will be invited,” said Stimac.
The postponement of the FIFA World Cup qualifier has forced both Asian countries to pull out their names from Copa America. While Australia had made its intention clear a while ago, Qatar recently informed the organisers about their unavailability.
