Not long ago, Bengal was the dominating force in Indian football. Three of the teams from the state – Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and Mohammedan Sporting – were the best in the country and won every club level trophy multiple times. To add to it, Bengal had a remarkable state team, who won the National Football Championship for the Santosh Trophy with monotonous regularity.
Those days are gone – Bengal football is very much on the decline. Neither the club teams nor the state side from the eastern metropolis, Kolkata, perform to the level they once used. The focus has shifted to other states; Goa were at the top for a few years, but currently they, too, are not at their best since two of their best clubs have decided to withdraw from the national scene.
The ongoing 2021-22 season certainly belongs to Kerala. They proved themselves the most dominating force in every aspect, in both men’s and women’s football. It began with Kerala Blasters’ exceptional display in the high-profile Indian Super League. In the battle for the league title, they finished fourth, but they hugely impressed in the knock-out round. In the semi-final, they tamed league champions Jamshedpur FC and lost the final to Hyderabad FC on penalties after leading by a goal till the 88th minute.
Next came the Santosh Trophy. Kerala hosted and finally won it too by beating Bengal in the final in front of 26,000 home crowd. The title round tie was a seesaw battle with Bengal first taking the lead before Kerala came back to score the equalizer and finally winning it in tie-breaker. At the moment, one of Kerala’s top teams – Gokulam Kerala – are doing a superb job in I-League and also in the Indian Women’s League. If everything goes according to plan, then Gokulam Kerala men’s team are only a step away from winning the I-League title ahead of Mohammedan Sporting. At the women’s front, the team have done superbly by scoring 45 goals in six matches. The title could well be theirs for the second time in a row if they beat nearest rivals Sethu FC, Madurai.