The most talented young players of the world gave India an unforgettable show of world-class football on the field, whilst the country showcased its organizational skills in a flawless and record-breaking tournament across six cities, which ended with England winning the title.
In a tournament of many firsts, the two best technically sound teams, England and Spain met in the finale. The top players from the academies of best English Premier League Clubs grabbed their maiden title after beating Spain 5-2 in the highest scoring in their fourth appearance.
The event U-17 World Cup in India turned into a milestone as it became the most attended and maximum scoring tournament in its history. The total number of spectators in this FIFA U-17 World Cup is 37,214 more than the record of highest attendance in a U-20 World Cup, that of 1,309,929 in Colombia in 2011. The India edition also became the highest scoring tournament with 177 goals from 52 matches, bettering the earlier highest of 172 during the 2013 United Arab Emirates.
On the very first match of India and in seconds of kick-off, the crowd of over 50,000 was on their toes. Their screaming was at the top of their voices and the atmosphere was so intense that the person, who had the slightest interest in football, could have confused it as a cricket match between India and Pakistan from outside the stadium.
Even though we lost the matches, it was an experience of a lifetime. There were players who performed admirably and caught the eyes in the tournament. Dheeraj Moirangthem, the Indian goalkeeper became one of the major motivations for the team and country. He became a bit of a fan favorite in Delhi which was evident from the fact that the crowd cheered every time he made one of his monster throws after which he almost does a cartwheel in the follow-through. Cosco congratulates him for his commendable performance and spirit.
As the beautiful game is growing in India, we can say that India is no longer a cricket crazy country only . Even though we didn’t win any match or have scored only one goal in the entire tournament, the occasion was so imperative that these things don’t matter.
Cosco cherishes the glory and encourages the junior players to flourish their skills for the coming tournaments.