Photos: Shibu Preman / S3 Media / Super League Kerala
A few minutes after the final whistle, Andrey Chernyshov, the Thrissur Magic coach, walked across to the away fans, bowed in front of them and then cupped his palms in gratitude. Chernyshov, who made his name as a player with two of the Moscow giants – Spartak and Dynamo – and also represented the Commonwealth of Independence States (CIS) at Euro 1992, has enjoyed coaching success in India before, with Mohammedan SC in the I-League, but very little could’ve prepared him for the kind of enthusiasm and devotion that he encountered during the second season of Super League Kerala (SLK) where he took a Thrissur team that finished bottom of the table in the first year all the way to the final, after finishing second in the league phase.
He wasn’t the only one saying his thanks to the fan base either. Mailson Alves, the Brazilian defender who won the ISL twice with Chennaiyin FC and is now nearly 38, was in tears as he applauded the fans – one hand on his heart – before walking back to the dugout.
The final, played at Kannur Warriors’ Jawahar Stadium, provided an intense spectacle with the home team, who barely scraped into the last four, holding out for a 1-0 victory despite playing the entire second half with just 10 men. The official estimate was that the attendance was 21,000, with two of the stands not really fit for purpose. But every video or pictures you see would suggest that far more people had somehow found a way to squeeze in.
The atmosphere was electric even an hour before kick-off, and the fans never stopped singing and chanting and banging their drums. Even an hour after the game, Kannur‘s Red Mariners fan base celebrated their heroes, and the team even had a roadshow with the trophy on Saturday.
The first semi-final, which had seen Kannur upset table-toppers Calicut FC at the EMS Stadium in Kozhikode, was witnessed by over 25,000 fans. But even that was less than the 34,700 that crammed in to that historic venue for the match against Malappuram FC earlier in the competition.
Attendances throughout, even at the smaller venues like Thrissur, were excellent with so many fans craving a local connection and league, especially in the absence of any national competition. The fan bases have already taken root too. Malappuram, despite not having made the final in either season, really left a mark with their travelling support. Well over 5,000 made it to Calicut, and as many as 24 buses made the journey to Thrissur for the semi-final which they lost to the home side.
Such as been the response and impact that SLK has already spoken of expanding to eight teams for the third season, and of improving existing stadiums – maybe even building new ones in order to accommodate the demand for tickets. One of the Kannur owners told RevSportz that 40,000 fans have tried to attend some of their home matches, though the stadium was in no shape to accommodate that many after not having hosted games for two decades.
What SLK has done is shown the way for the rest of India. It’s not that there is no passion for football in the country, or that it’s only about Messi, Ronaldo, Argentina and Portugal. Fans will come if you give them keen competition and an atmosphere that they can lap up. SLK also hit the sweet spot with the local connect. Not only was it well organised, but the league’s clever use of social media and promos got people enthusiastic about the tournament even before it began.
These promos not only included local movie personalities, but even the likes of Dr Shashi Tharoor, Thiruvananthapuram MP and Sanju Samson, Indian cricketer. Indian football may be in crisis, but SLK has shown what’s possible if administrators and investors are really serious about tapping into the enormous fan base for the sport in the country.
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