Initiatives undertaken by Zee Sports to push football at the grass root level have been commendable and have contributed to giving the game the much needed push.

According to Varghese the impetus needed by the sport is three-fold.

• Support from the government
• Huge club cult that can be brought in if international players are roped in
• Corporate incentive to support the game - no tax for investment in football as a game.

Iyer, on the other hand is of the opinion that while initiatives such as that by Zee Sports will definitely do good for the game in India, apart from the buzz created about the game, only the local enthusiasts seem to be getting involved. "However, with many global football investors like adidas and Nike upping their focus in India, the promotions created by them would also come in, which will add to the interest of the game," he says.

Ranka adds, "The interest is definitely going up in terms of broadcasters like Zee Sports and ESPN going and picking up archives of EPL, UEFA and other games. Even 10 per cent of the Indian population following the game will make it huge. Today, the biggest gain or loss is for the broadcasters because brands can still do without it. Brands will be interested but only on television because of the high ratings that the matches will get. ESPN Star Sports will definitely get more ratings that what Ten Sports got four years back."

Goel feels that if initiatives such as these are celebrated by the media in a big way, there will be a lot more value which will help the game to become more popular. "I think that initiatives such as Mahindra United "Heros" should be talked about, written and felicitated," he says.