Three fading French stars, Robert Pires, David Trezeguet and Nicolas Anelka, combined to keep public interest in the Indian Super League alive as the season entered its third week.
However, even the former members of Les Blues' Euro 2000-winning squad could not steal the limelight from some startling data about the popularity of the inaugural edition of the league. According to ISL owners, Reliance IMG and Star India, the league is being watched by more Indians than the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
According to the official ISL website, the league was seen on television by 170.2 million Indians in its first week, compared to just 87.6 million viewers for Week 1 of the recent World Cup.
The figures also show that 74.7 million Indians watched the season opener between Atletico de Kolkata and Mumbai City FC on Oct. 12 on television. In contrast, only 6.2 million Indians watched the World Cup opener between five-time World Cup winner Brazil and Croatia.
The numbers are indeed encouraging for the overall growth of the sport in India. The quality of football on display at the ISL has been of a much higher level than the I-League. Qualitatively, the ISL could even be compared to a few good Asian leagues or the second divisions of some European leagues.
However, comparing the ISL favourably with the World Cup or the top European leagues could well cause much embarrassment. It could cast serious doubts about the nature of understanding of the sport in the country should technical excellence be the sole criterion behind preference. "Two times bigger than the World Cup" is a great marketing line, as is "Many times more popular than the English Premier League." But, inadvertently, it could well end up as a statement of admission that Indians understand the sport far less than their No. 1 passion, cricket.
Former France and Arsenal midfielder Robert Pires also contributed to keep the interest in the tournament alive. A disciplinary committee of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) slapped a two-match ban on Pires, who is the marquee signing for FC Goa.
Pires was punished for an alleged altercation with Atletico de Kolkata coach Antonio Lopez Habas during half-time of the meeting between the two sides on Oct. 23. Visitors Atletico had prevailed 2-1 after being down by a solitary goal at the break.
Habas was handed a suspension of four matches. Both Pires and Habas were handed a fine of approximately $8,200 (500,000 Rupees) and can submit an appeal in four days.
Pires' coach, Brazilian legend Zico, claimed after the match that the former Arsenal man had been punched by Habas, with both clubs submitting written reports to the ISL governing body the following day.
Pires' former France teammates David Trezeguet and Nicolas Anelka were also newsmakers.
Trezeguet, the marquee signing of FC Pune City, opened his account in the ISL by scoring his team's second goal in a 2-0 win against Pires' team on Oct. 26.
Anelka, the marquee striker of Peter Reid's Mumbai City FC, has now served his three-match ISL ban. He is available to play against Chennaiyin FC on Oct. 28.
Anelka's ISL ban was a continuation of the five-match ban imposed on him in March by the Football Association (FA) after he was found guilty of making an ethnically offensive gesture while he was a West Bromwich Albion player.
The contract of the much-travelled French striker had been terminated by West Bromwich Albion following the incident and he joined the ISL in September.