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Media Microscope: The Sunil Chhetri Experiment
India’s first MLS signing could have a huge impact for the United States as well as for India. A look inside the media stir that Sunil Chhetri’s move is causing at home and abroad.
By Seth Vertelney
Apr 16, 2010
Pop quiz: Name one well-known athlete who hails from India. This shouldn’t be too difficult, right? There are 1.2 billion people who live there, and I’m just asking for just one, solitary athlete.
I’m waiting...
Still waiting.
On the surface, it may seem like an easy task, but, for Americans especially, answering this question is more of an exercise in futility.
The Kansas City Wizards hope to make this task far easier this season. Based on the media firestorm around the first ever Indian in MLS, the name Sunil Chhetri could soon roll off the tongue in much the same way Yao Ming does when an American is asked to name a Chinese athlete.
Chhetri, 25, was signed last month from Dempo FC in India, becoming the only member of the Indian national soccer team to currently ply his trade outside of India. He made his Wizards debut on Tuesday, starting and playing 45 minutes in their Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup play-in match.
Soccer is not exactly a national obsession in India. The country’s national pastime is undoubtedly cricket and, according to Goal.com India editor Rahul Bali, Indian soccer is infrequently covered in the broadcast media.
Their national side certainly hasn't given the media much of a reason to do so. Despite its massive population, India currently sits at 132nd in the FIFA rankings, sandwiched right between noted powers Swaziland and Turkmenistan.
There are myriad of reasons for their struggles, which, according to Bali, include poor facilities, lack of infrastructure, poor vision from the All India Football Federation, and slow grassroots development of soccer.
Although its world football profile is feeble, there has been something of a media frenzy surrounding Chhetri’s arrival in Kansas City, as many Indians have fervently followed his move with a mixture of curiosity, excitement and hope.
Their zeal is understandable. Chhetri’s breakthrough could be a boon for India’s soccer future, as it would demonstrate an Indian's ability to make a mark outside his home country. A successful stint in Kansas City could open the door to future transfers, allowing Indian players to compete on a higher level than the I-League.
In an email interview, Wizards vice president of communications Rob Thomson said that the media interest surrounding Chhetri has been the strongest he’s seen for a player since he started with the club in 1997.
"We have conducted over 75 interviews in India thus far, resulting in over 250 articles. Some outlets take our press releases verbatim and put them directly into their publications, which is great. The number of followers is both unique and staggering in my opinion," said Thomson.
Chhetri already displayed his goal-scoring ability when he notched a hat trick for the Wizards reserves two weekends ago against the University of Evansville. According to Bali, the trifecta of goals was heavily covered in India, both in print and broadcast media.
The news of a MLS reserve match's prominence in a country as large as India must have been particularly satisfying for two men: MLS commissioner Don Garber and president of the United States Soccer Federation Sunil Gulati, who was born in India. According to Thomson, both will be involved in a club press event in the near future.
Chettri's signing has reverberated around the American media as well, focusing attention on a Kansas City club that can sometimes get overshadowed by more high-profile MLS teams on the east and west coast. Thomson says he's fielded requests for major stories from the New York Times and the Associated Press, among others. When the Chhetri show is taken on the road, Thomson also expects to be busier than normal.
"I anticipate a lot more media in our locker room when we travel around the United States and the major markets we play in," he said.
One of the major challenges that still needs to be hashed out is television coverage of Wizards games in India. For now, the only way Indians can watch Chhetri’s matches is via online feeds, which, as most know, have varying degrees of reliability and legality.
Thomson says the club continues to work on this issue, and he hopes to see television coverage, as well as other forms of interactivity, added in the near future.
"We have said from day one that we will work diligently to be made available in India. We continue working on our marketing plans for people to be able to follow Sunil's growth and experiences. We are working on numerous platforms for viewing, merchandise, interactive chats and more," he said.
In the meantime, the Wizards and MLS will continue to imagine the possibilities that could arise with an entry into a nation with an emerging economy, burgeoning middle class and, oh yeah, over a billion people.
Currently, aside from Chhetri, there are just two Indian-born athletes playing professional sports in the United States: Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel, two pitchers in the Pittsburgh Pirates minor league system. Translation: the Indian market is ripe for the picking, provided the Wizards and the league promote Chhetri’s odyssey properly, giving sufficient access and coverage to fans at home and abroad.
There is a considerable amount at stake for the league and for the future of Indian soccer with this move. Ramping up coverage of Chhetri’s foray into MLS will give The Chhetri Experiment its best chance of succeeding and will finally give Americans an athletic face to associate with the world’s second most populous country.
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India's Chhetri brings rock-star status to Wizards
By JOHN MARSHALL
2010-04-17
When forward Sunil Chhetri was added to the Kansas City Wizards' 24-man roster, it barely registered with most American football fans.
Back in India, however, Chhetri's signing was monumental.
One of the biggest stars in the world's second-most populated country _ 1.1 billion people and counting _ became the first player from his country to sign with Major League Soccer, to go through a door the people of India hope will stay open.
"He's a rock star, absolutely," said Raghu Sardhr, an Indian attending the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where Chhetri played his first game for the Wizards. "The people back in India love him. It was really, really big news."
Sunil Chhetri was little more than a name on a list when he first popped up on Kansas City's radar.
The Wizards, like most MLS teams, receive dozens of letters, video links and DVDs each month from players seeking a chance to play professional soccer. The Kansas City staff feels guilty about not giving everyone a chance, so they take a look.
Chhetri immediately caught their eye, even in the limited video clips they were able to obtain. Find a way to get him to the United States and we'll give him a shot is what they told representatives from the Indian team.
After Chhetri made it to Arizona for a training camp with the Wizards, it was clear he could play.
Blurry-fast feet. Nose for the goal. Connected with the other players on the attack almost instantly. Good instincts, able to adapt to the team's style of play without thinking about it. Quick to get the ball ahead instead of holding it too long. Hits well with both feet, uses his entire body to strike it. Pretty good in the air at 5-foot-7.
Even better, Chhetri had a burning intensity to go with his talent.
"We learned he's extremely competitive, has a desire to be successful and when you have that, you can get a lot out of a guy," Wizards coach Peter Vermes said. "If someone has the talent and they don't have the fire in the belly, so to speak, every day you're struggling to get those guys going. This guy just gets it."
What the Wizards didn't realize was just how big he was back in India.
Chhetri has been a regular on the Indian national team since 2004, scoring 16 goals in 35 appearances. His most famous moment came in the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup final against Tajikistan, where he scored three goals to send India to the Asian Cup for the first time since 1984.
The reaction in India to Chhetri's move to the U.S. has been like what happened in Japan nine years ago when Ichiro Suzuki switched to Major League Baseball, just without the round-the-clock TV coverage _ at least not yet.
The Wizards held the news conference for his signing at 9:30 p.m. local time so it could be broadcast in India. The team has doubled its Facebook friends to 12,000 since he joined the team, many of them posting photos of their favorite star, some saying his signing will bring more fans to MLS than David Beckham ever did.
Rob Johnson, Kansas City's vice president of communications, has been inundated with calls from media members in India, often at 3 or 4 a.m. because of the time difference.
"It's really blown us away, not only the amount of the interest but the depth of the interest, kind of all things Sunil," said Greg Cotton, chief operating officer of the Wizards' parent company, OnGoal. "But he is the face of Indian soccer. A lot of the Indian press has told us that they believe Sunil is going to be the one who's going to bring Indian soccer to the rest of the world. That's pretty exciting when you hear stuff like that."
Back in India, dozens of stories have been written about Chhetri's monumental move, treating every development _ a goal during training was front-page news _ as if it were a lunar landing. Chhetri has done close to 150 interviews since agreeing to terms with the Wizards on March 25 and another live feed to India is expected this week.
The Times of India, a newspaper with over 10 million readers, printed the Wizards' news release verbatim when it was announced that Chhetri would start Tuesday night's game against Colorado in the U.S. Open Cup.
"We've called him the Michael Jordan of India, but I don't think we still really appreciate how big he is," Wizards defender Jimmy Conrad said. "It's a country of 1 billion and everybody knows his name. That alone puts him a little different stratosphere."
Just don't expect Chhetri to feel the pressure.
Football doesn't have nearly the fervent following in India as cricket does, but it's still much bigger there than in the U.S. An estimated 80 million viewers tune in to watch English Premier League games on TV and Indian national-team members are like national heroes.
Chhetri accepts the expectations of a nation, he just won't let them weigh him down. He worked too hard to get this opportunity, still has so much he wants to do.
The focus that got Chhetri here will keep his eyes on the goal as the attention swirls around him.
"I haven't given anyone my telephone number, I've tried to keep to myself because all of this is like added pressure," Chhetri said. "I try not to think about these things. The only thing I was thinking about when I got here was to give my best and make the most of this opportunity."
Sardhr and the rest of India's soccer fans are counting on it.
He and four other Indian students watched Tuesday's game from the stands, then worked their way behind a fence to a sidewalk leading to the Wizards locker room. After 10 minutes of furtive, excited glances toward the door, they saw Chhetri walk out.
Their eyes lit up and so did his when he looked up to find a group of his countrymen waiting. They chatted for a few minutes and snapped a photo together before Chhetri walked off toward the team bus, leaving the students with huge grins and an amazing story to tell the people back home.
"We'd love to see more Indians come here and I think this will open the door," Sardhr said. "He's one of the best if not the best in India, so they're excited."
That, as the Wizards found out, is a huge understatement.
By JOHN MARSHALL
2010-04-17
When forward Sunil Chhetri was added to the Kansas City Wizards' 24-man roster, it barely registered with most American football fans.
Back in India, however, Chhetri's signing was monumental.
One of the biggest stars in the world's second-most populated country _ 1.1 billion people and counting _ became the first player from his country to sign with Major League Soccer, to go through a door the people of India hope will stay open.
"He's a rock star, absolutely," said Raghu Sardhr, an Indian attending the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where Chhetri played his first game for the Wizards. "The people back in India love him. It was really, really big news."
Sunil Chhetri was little more than a name on a list when he first popped up on Kansas City's radar.
The Wizards, like most MLS teams, receive dozens of letters, video links and DVDs each month from players seeking a chance to play professional soccer. The Kansas City staff feels guilty about not giving everyone a chance, so they take a look.
Chhetri immediately caught their eye, even in the limited video clips they were able to obtain. Find a way to get him to the United States and we'll give him a shot is what they told representatives from the Indian team.
After Chhetri made it to Arizona for a training camp with the Wizards, it was clear he could play.
Blurry-fast feet. Nose for the goal. Connected with the other players on the attack almost instantly. Good instincts, able to adapt to the team's style of play without thinking about it. Quick to get the ball ahead instead of holding it too long. Hits well with both feet, uses his entire body to strike it. Pretty good in the air at 5-foot-7.
Even better, Chhetri had a burning intensity to go with his talent.
"We learned he's extremely competitive, has a desire to be successful and when you have that, you can get a lot out of a guy," Wizards coach Peter Vermes said. "If someone has the talent and they don't have the fire in the belly, so to speak, every day you're struggling to get those guys going. This guy just gets it."
What the Wizards didn't realize was just how big he was back in India.
Chhetri has been a regular on the Indian national team since 2004, scoring 16 goals in 35 appearances. His most famous moment came in the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup final against Tajikistan, where he scored three goals to send India to the Asian Cup for the first time since 1984.
The reaction in India to Chhetri's move to the U.S. has been like what happened in Japan nine years ago when Ichiro Suzuki switched to Major League Baseball, just without the round-the-clock TV coverage _ at least not yet.
The Wizards held the news conference for his signing at 9:30 p.m. local time so it could be broadcast in India. The team has doubled its Facebook friends to 12,000 since he joined the team, many of them posting photos of their favorite star, some saying his signing will bring more fans to MLS than David Beckham ever did.
Rob Johnson, Kansas City's vice president of communications, has been inundated with calls from media members in India, often at 3 or 4 a.m. because of the time difference.
"It's really blown us away, not only the amount of the interest but the depth of the interest, kind of all things Sunil," said Greg Cotton, chief operating officer of the Wizards' parent company, OnGoal. "But he is the face of Indian soccer. A lot of the Indian press has told us that they believe Sunil is going to be the one who's going to bring Indian soccer to the rest of the world. That's pretty exciting when you hear stuff like that."
Back in India, dozens of stories have been written about Chhetri's monumental move, treating every development _ a goal during training was front-page news _ as if it were a lunar landing. Chhetri has done close to 150 interviews since agreeing to terms with the Wizards on March 25 and another live feed to India is expected this week.
The Times of India, a newspaper with over 10 million readers, printed the Wizards' news release verbatim when it was announced that Chhetri would start Tuesday night's game against Colorado in the U.S. Open Cup.
"We've called him the Michael Jordan of India, but I don't think we still really appreciate how big he is," Wizards defender Jimmy Conrad said. "It's a country of 1 billion and everybody knows his name. That alone puts him a little different stratosphere."
Just don't expect Chhetri to feel the pressure.
Football doesn't have nearly the fervent following in India as cricket does, but it's still much bigger there than in the U.S. An estimated 80 million viewers tune in to watch English Premier League games on TV and Indian national-team members are like national heroes.
Chhetri accepts the expectations of a nation, he just won't let them weigh him down. He worked too hard to get this opportunity, still has so much he wants to do.
The focus that got Chhetri here will keep his eyes on the goal as the attention swirls around him.
"I haven't given anyone my telephone number, I've tried to keep to myself because all of this is like added pressure," Chhetri said. "I try not to think about these things. The only thing I was thinking about when I got here was to give my best and make the most of this opportunity."
Sardhr and the rest of India's soccer fans are counting on it.
He and four other Indian students watched Tuesday's game from the stands, then worked their way behind a fence to a sidewalk leading to the Wizards locker room. After 10 minutes of furtive, excited glances toward the door, they saw Chhetri walk out.
Their eyes lit up and so did his when he looked up to find a group of his countrymen waiting. They chatted for a few minutes and snapped a photo together before Chhetri walked off toward the team bus, leaving the students with huge grins and an amazing story to tell the people back home.
"We'd love to see more Indians come here and I think this will open the door," Sardhr said. "He's one of the best if not the best in India, so they're excited."
That, as the Wizards found out, is a huge understatement.
