Show notes
With a combined 2.9 billion inhabitants, India and China are the world’s largest countries. Yet both of them underachieve spectacularly when it comes to international football.
The two Asian nations have made just one World Cup appearance between them and have consistently come up short at continental level as well.
So what are the reasons behind India and China’s international soccer struggles? How many years will it be before one of them graces the world’s greatest stage again? And why does a huge population not automatically translate into footballing success?
Plus, there’s a word for the world’s other top 10 largest countries who missed out on this summer’s World Cup and how the widespread adoption of the diaspora strategy is making a large player pool less relevant than ever before.
You can already listen to Monday’s bumper bonus podcast on Patreon. The main story is all about the Coupe de France - but not the overseas territories this time. There's an epic 10th-tier cupset, a draw with a missing ball and much more besides!
Chapters
00:00 – Intro
00:30 – India & China’s football struggles
05:10 – Sporting priorities and systems
06:23 – Grassroots and development
08:39 – Domestic league disarray
11:25 – Corruption and scandal
13:57 – Poor leadership and incompetence
16:53 – Population versus performance
18:55 – Predictions for the future
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