Union Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Anurag Thakur announced on Wednesday that the Indian men’s and women’s football teams will participate in the upcoming Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou. The Asian Games will be held in Hangzhou, China, from September 23 to October 8, but the football competition will begin on September 19. Both the men’s and women’s teams were set to miss the tournament after failing to meet the qualification criteria.
According to the sports ministry’s guidelines, only those sports that have achieved a ranking up to 8th among participating Asian countries in the last year should be considered for participation in the Asian Games. But the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and the Government of India decided to ease the rules so that both teams could participate in the Asian Games even after failing to meet the existing criteria.
Anurag Thakur, who is also the Information and Broadcasting Minister, took to X, formerly known as Twitter, and wrote, “Good news for Indian football lovers! Our national football teams, both Men’s and Women’s, are set to participate in the upcoming Asian Games. The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of India, has decided to relax the rules to facilitate the participation of both teams, which were not qualifying as per the existing criterion. Keeping in mind their latest performances in recent times, the Ministry decided to grant the relaxation. I am sure they will put their best foot forward in the Asian Games and make our country proud.”
