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Football

India Tops FIFA Incoming Transfer List 2017

India Tops FIFA Incoming Transfer List 2017
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By

Nazrin Mather

Published: 1 Feb 2018 8:01 AM GMT
On Tuesday, FIFA published a report which stated that India had the maximum number of incoming transfers in Asia in 2017. So, India has officially topped the incoming transfer list in the Asian Football Confederation for the year 2017. This has placed India ahead of Asian football giants like Japan and China. As per the FIFA report, India had 158 players coming in, a jump of 32.8 percent which has put the nation ahead of the traditional Asian stars, Japan and China. The surge can be majorly attributed to the Indian Super League which expanded to 10 teams this season with the inclusion of Bengaluru FC and Jamshedpur FC in an extended league. Another aid which came from the league was that it relaxed its rule to allow clubs to have six foreign players in the squad. ISL is among the better attended and viewed leagues in the world. It had a television viewership of 216 million in the third season. Going by the facts, the opening three weeks of the fourth season, which kicked off in November 2017, had recorded a reach of 81 million viewers. Image result for isl
Source: Indian Express Though it was apprehended that there would be an increase in foreign talent entering the country, it was not expected to top the list in Asia. The ISL clubs have been quite active in the winter transfer window, which has seen at the least an eleven of international signings. FC Pune City roped in Spanish defender Manuel Jesus Ortiz Toribio and Austrian midfielder Marko Stankovic while ATK had three signings in December. The Asian giant, China, saw a dip in the number of incoming transfers due to its imposition of restrictions on the number of foreign players. The country had 143 talents coming in, which was a clear drop of 10.1 percent as compared to 2016. According to figures and statements in the report published by FIFA, India was placed third in the Asian Football Confederation in the spending ranking. It had spent USD 36.3 million to procure talents, behind China and Japan. With no outgoing transfer activity from India, the country saw itself positioned in the top 10 in terms of net club spending. It was placed ninth, ahead of Japan and Saudi Arabia. Japan registered a net spending of USD 30.4 million while Saudi Arabia accounted for USD 24.1 million. It has been a positive glimpse to see Indian clubs investing money in their teams, in order to strengthen their squads and increase the competitiveness of the league.
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