AIFF set for centralised players registration system

New Delhi: With professionalism being the buzzword, the AIFF is planning to implement a centralised player registration system that will help the apex body crack down on age-fudging besides providing all the footballers -- from district to top level -- the security of insurance.

The IDs of the players registered with their respective states as well as the All India Football Federation will be managed by a software company of international repute. As per the system, players will be asked to submit registration fees and the amount will be subject to "category of players" and "within their affordable limits", a top AIFF official told PTI. The proposal has come in for criticism from some clubs and state associations and the AIFF sought to clarify saying "it was for all-round development of Indian football". "The fees the players would be paying are nominal. And 50 per cent of the money that would be collected from them would go back to the states which can use it for youth development programmes. The states can also use some of the money for development activities in districts," the official said. "Now for a foreign player or the Indian players playing in the I-League, Rs 10 or 15,000 is not a huge amount. Similarly, a state level or a district level player should not have problems paying Rs 50, 100, 300, 500 or for that matter 1000," he justified. "The remaining 50 per cent would be used by the AIFF in paying the software company and paying for the players` premiums to the insurance company. And if there is some money left after that, they will be used only for football development," the official said. The official pointed out that the AIFF has had to put up a blank face whenever it had been asked by FIFA and AFC about players` registration. "Whenever FIFA and AFC ask how many registered players you have in your country or in the states, the AIFF never had an answer," he pointed out. The registered players will get unique player ID cards and will be allowed to compete in all the AIFF and state-registered tournaments. The new directive has been approved by the Emergency Committee of the AIFF. While the federation is gung-ho about the change, the state bodies don`t seem to be excited. The Goa Football Association (GFA) has objected and asked the AIFF to reconsider the system. Another official of a state body said, "The AIFF has to understand the ground reality and asking players to pay is putting extra burden on them." PTI