At the end of last season, German champion Bayern Munich played an exhibition game in India against Mohun Bagan in front of 125,000 fans, pocketing around $3 million for its troubles. But that money, which was put up by a private Indian company, could surely have been better invested to the benefit of Indian soccer, writes John Duerden.
“Do you think Bayern Munich played against Mohun Bagan because they love India or Indian football?” asked Bob Houghton, current head coach of India’s national team. “They played in India because they were paid an obscene sum of money. If they had spent that amount on developing the youth teams, Indian football would have been better off.”
Chelsea, Arsenal, Real Madrid, Manchester United and the L.A. Galaxy have all toured Asia in recent years to broaden both their fan bases and their replica shirt sales. “Asia holds huge potential for clubs hoping to expand their brand and business,” said L.A.’s GM Alexi Lalas before the Galaxy tour in March. In China, though, fans are already jaded. In the beginning, said the vice-president of the Chinese FA, Yang Yiming, “the tours really warmed the Chinese football market. In the 1990s, everyone in Beijing was talking excitedly about how Beijing Guoan defeated AC Milan and Arsenal. And then we realized it’s only a show and a joke, just a commercial game, no more than that.”