India makes history with first-ever international futsal victory against Mongolia

India’s men's futsal team made history with their first-ever international victory, beating Mongolia 3-0. Skipper Nikhil Mali and Aman Shah were key players in this historic win, a significant milestone for Indian futsal’s development under coach Reza Kordi

Hyderabad: When the scoreboard of Kuwait’s Qushaian Al-Mutairi Hall read Mongolia 0, India 3, on Wednesday evening, there weren’t just numbers glowing in; it was history. For the first time ever, India’s men’s national futsal team walked away with an international victory. For a side ranked 135th in the world, beating Mongolia, 25 places above them, was a statement and also about proving a point: India can play futsal, and India can grow.

“This victory means a lot to the team, the country, and to me personally,” said skipper Nikhil Mali, who has been with the Futsal Tigers through every step of the way since the team played their first game just over two years ago. “I think this is the first step in the right direction, and I hope from here we just keep moving forward.”

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When India was blanked twice by Bahrain in the two friendlies in August 2023, Mali and his teammates got their first taste of what international futsal feels like.

“From our very first international match against Bahrain to now, our tenth, I think we have learned so much tactically and technically as well. Futsal is completely different from football — the techniques, the tactics, the rotations, everything. Slowly, we will reach the point where we can qualify for the Asian Cup, and hopefully for the World Cup in the coming years,” the 28-year-old aspired.

The dreams are big, and to some, may seem unrealistic at this point. And what should be made clear is that these dreams did not just crop up because India beat Mongolia. This gives them a foundation to build upon. Indian futsal has the right to dream of reaching the pinnacle.

“Winning India’s first game is the best feeling ever,” said Aman Shah, who put up a solid showing in the fixo position and played a crucial role in India’s first clean sheet. “We struggled at the start of this campaign, but came back stronger. Learning from our mistakes, playing with heart, taking chances, and defending together. Getting a clean sheet in futsal is very difficult, so it was really satisfying. Our keeper (Ozen Silva) did a great job, and the whole team defended and attacked as one.

“You could see it on the players’ faces, after every tackle we were celebrating, the fans were celebrating, the coaches and staff too. That’s the feeling you get when you play for India. You have to earn it,” Shah added.

It wasn’t only the players who carried the belief. In Ardiya, Kuwait, a small but passionate group of Indian fans stood by their team through all three games, chanting through defeats, never losing faith, and staying until the end. As the Indian players headed to the bus outside the stadium after the 1-10 defeat to Australia, their apologies to the fans were met with replies of “no worries at all, we’re sure you’ll win the last game for us.”

“The Indian fans in Kuwait supported us in every match, even after the first two heavy defeats. They came again for the last game and stood by us. It feels amazing to see our people supporting us when we play outside India, and that is a very special feeling,” said Mali.

And at the heart of this all was the nation’s first foreign head coach in futsal, Reza Kordi. Hailing from Iran, a nation that has won 13 out of 17 AFC Futsal Asian Cups held so far, he was bound to change the face of futsal in India.

“Under coach Reza, who has so much experience, we’ve learned many new aspects, from movements in defence and attack, set-pieces, to even the small details like how to react in different situations,” said Shah.