A Detailed Report On The Decision That Will Affect Former Players, Staff And Employees Of Indian Football.

What happens to footballers and officials after they retire without financial security? That question has been hanging in Indian football for decades. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has now taken a step to address it.

In a meeting held at Football House, New Delhi, on 29 July 2025, the AIFF Finance Committee approved the opening of separate bank accounts for the newly created Benevolence Fund and the proposed Pension Fund. This follows the decision of the Executive Committee meeting on 2 July 2025.

The official AIFF report released on the same day highlighted that the Benevolence Fund had an initial corpus of ₹7,00,002. This amount includes ₹1,00,001 each contributed by the President and Vice President, matched with ₹5,00,000 directly from AIFF.

Purpose Behind The Funds

The Benevolence Fund will provide one-time medical grants to former footballers, referees, coaches, support staff and even football journalists. This comes at a time when healthcare costs continue to rise and many of these individuals lack long-term insurance. The AIFF clarified that the scheme will be implemented immediately as the bank accounts are opened.

A separate Pension Fund has also been proposed for AIFF employees who have completed at least 20 years of service and retire at or after the age of 60. The exact rules will be set by the concerned committees before it is rolled out.

To show what this means, the table below summarises the confirmed details from the Finance Committee report:

Fund Name	Eligibility	Initial Corpus	Status
Benevolence Fund	Former players, coaches, referees, staff, journalists (medical needs)	₹7,00,002	Bank account approved
Pension Fund	Employees with 20+ years service and retirement age 60+	To be finalised	Bank account approved

Members And Decisions In The Meeting

The Finance Committee meeting was led by Menla Ethenpa, with Treasurer Kipa Ajay and Deputy Secretary-General M. Satyanarayan also present. Other members in attendance were Syed Imtiaz Hussain, Mayank Anilkumar Buch, and L V Lalthantluanga.

The group went through the 2024–25 financial statements and agreed to send them for a statutory audit.

The meeting was not just about the new funds. The committee also prepared a new purchasing policy to control future spending. This draft will now go to the Executive Committee for approval. These extra steps show that AIFF’s financial plans go well beyond welfare schemes.

Wider Impact On The Football Community

The initiative comes at a time when the condition of former football players has been a matter of concern. Many have struggled with medical expenses after retirement. The Benevolence Fund seeks to address this gap.

Similarly, the Pension Fund will help long-serving employees who have given decades to the organisation.

Many former football stars in India have faced big problems after retirement. D.M.K. Afzal, who won gold at the 1962 Asian Games, struggled with health and money problems in his old age. He had to depend on friends and fans for help when his medical bills piled up.

Tulsidas Balaram, another legend from the same era, also faced illness and no real financial security after he retired. Even great players like P.K. Banerjee and Chuni Goswami went through tough times in their later years, battling serious health issues with very little support.

The new Benevolence Fund has been created to stop this from happening again. It will give one-time financial help to former players, referees, coaches, support staff and even football journalists when they face medical emergencies.

The table below lists the key functions expected to be handled by these funds:

Function	Fund	Responsible Committee	Timeline
Medical grant applications	Benevolence Fund	Treasurer, Finance, Medical, Technical	Immediate (once accounts active)
Employee retirement support	Pension Fund	Finance, Human Resources	Policy finalisation stage

The AIFF also plans to create a Pension Fund for its long-serving employees. Anyone who has worked for AIFF for more than 20 years and retires at or after 60 years of age will be eligible. This will give loyal employees some financial security after retirement – something that was missing for years.

A special committee will be formed to check every application. It will include people from the Treasurer’s office and the Finance, Medical and Technical Committees. This will make sure only those who truly need the help will receive it.

Conclusion

According to the AIFF’s own communication, the funds’ bank accounts will be opened without delay, and the audit of the financial year 2024–25 will move forward. The Executive Committee will review the proposed procurement policy at its next meeting.

If successful, the Benevolence and Pension Funds could become templates for other sports federations in India. For now, the focus will be on ensuring that funds reach the intended beneficiaries quickly.

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