India overcame stubborn resistance to beat a spirited Maldives 3-2 and enter the final of the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Championships for a record 10th time after the in-form Jeje Lalpekhlua struck twice in a thrilling semi-final, in Thiruvananthapuram, on Thursday.
Hosts Kerala Blasters did themselves no good after playing a goalless draw against a 10-man NorthEast United FC in a hard-fought Indian Super League (ISL) game at the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium on Thursday.
All the results from the I-League and ISL matches played on Saturday
Lambasting the Indian Super League (ISL) for the heavy penalties it imposed on FC Goa, the club's Brazillian coach Zico said the order is based on a "clearly cooked" video and has left him disgusted.
Iain Hume struck his second hat-trick of the season as defending champions Atletico de Kolkata today became the first team to seal a semifinal berth following their 4-1 rout of FC Pune City in the Indian Super League football tournament at the Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Friday.
Delhi Dynamos dominated the proceedings but yet again played out a draw in a 1-1 result against FC Pune City in a familiar show of their strikers missing chances galore in the Indian Super League football match in New Delhi on Thursday.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Fikru Teferra struck an equaliser off a dubious penalty decision to force a 1-1 draw for Atletico de Kolkata against a 10-man FC Goa and sneak into the semi-finals of the Hero Indian Super League on Wednesday.
In its bid to restructure the country's football, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) has formed a task force and one of the decisions taken is to hold the popular Indian Super League (ISL) over a longer period, according to its General Secretary Kushal Das.
Luis Garcia fired in a stunning header in the second-half to help Atletico de Kolkata end their four-match winless run by registering a 1-0 win over NorthEast United FC in their return leg ISL fixture at the Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata.
Legendary Sachin Tendulkar along with his one-time opening partner Sourav Ganguly will be once again seen together along with Bollywood A Listers like Ranbir Kapoor, Hrithik Roshan and some of the other prominent actors like John Abraham and Abhishek Bachchan at the opening ceremony of the cash-rich Indian Super League.
John Stiven Mendoza Valencia scored a second half equaliser to help Chennayin FC eke out a 1-1 draw against FC Pune City in a Indian Super League match and maintain their supremacy atop the points table.
Young NorthEast United FC goalkeeper T P Rehenesh made three spectacular saves to deny Delhi Dynamos a win as the the two sides settled for a goal-less stalemate after an entertaining Hero Indian Super League match on Wednesday.
NorthEast United FC capitalised on a debatable penalty decision as they held FC Goa to a 1-1 draw in a high intensity Hero Indian Super League match.
Atletico de Kolkata, reduced to ten men from the 43d minute, reached the final of the Indian Super League on goal aggregate after playing out a hard-tackling, goalless draw with Mumbai City FC in the second leg semi-final.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Sunday
NorthEast United struck twice in the second half in a remarkable turnaround to stun Mumbai City FC 2-0 in a Hero Indian Super League match which saw the home side reduced to nine men in the end in Mumbai.
Is it a last ditch attempt to reassure consumers, or a way to gain the upper hand at the negotiating table, or is it just a way of exhausting the treasure chest before the lights go out
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
In an exclusive chat with rediff.com Materazzi throws light on his team's rise in the ISL and the camaraderie among his players.
India's new soccer league with its cast of celebrity owners, experienced foreign managers and a sprinkling of high-profile players will kick off on Sunday, igniting hopes of waking the country from its football slumber.
An ambitious project to awaken a sleeping giant of Asian soccer looks like confirming Nobel laureate Amartya Sen's famous remark that India pricks up its ears only when comparisons with China are made. With China embarked on a multi-billion dollar mission to become a soccer superpower by 2050, India looks set to follow suit with its own plan to raise its status in the game to match its burgeoning economic power. Come October, India, most famously described as soccer's sleeping giant by former FIFA president Sepp Blatter, will launch a programme to engage more than 11 million children in soccer-related activities.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Wednesday
Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright has launched a scathing attack on the club's manager Arsene Wenger, saying he could not make a case for the Frenchman to extend his reign beyond this season.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Wednesday
Following their 2-0 win over nine-member Mumbai City FC in the Indian Super League game at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, NorthEast United FC's head coach Ricki Herbert said he was disappointed that his team couldn't defeat their under-strength opponents by a bigger margin.
Amid the buzz surrounding what has been termed a game-changer for Indian football, Brazilian legend Zico says the 158-ranked nation's hopes of scaling greater heights in the world sport depends solely on the local players' "mentality" and their "ability" to develop.
Star striker Sunil Chhetri was bought at Rs 1.20 crore at the first-ever Indian Super League's auction featuring 10 domestic football players in Mumbai, on Friday.