Browsing: Semifinalists

East Bengal players in a huddle. (Twitter | @eastbengal_fc) New Delhi: Three of India’s top football clubs have halted operations amid the uncertainty over the future of the sport in the country. Kerala Blasters, Mohun Bagan Super Giant and Odisha FC have all suspended operations of their first teams. For the four teams that remain in the AIFF Super Cup, it is going to be business as usual – for now.East Bengal, Punjab FC, FC Goa and Mumbai City FC will play their AIFF Super Cup semi-finals on December 4 and 5 with the final on December 7. All matches will be played at the Fatorda Stadium in Goa.Sources within Punjab FC and Mumbai City FC have confirmed to TimesofIndia.com that the players have been given an extended break since their last encounter. Mumbai City FC last played on November 6 against Kerala Blasters and Punjab FC’s last fixture came against Bengaluru FC on November 5.A Punjab FC insider revealed the players are due to report back for training on November 14. Mumbai City FC, meanwhile, confirmed that it is “business as usual for now.”FC Goa players and staff are also due to return on November 14, a club official confirmed. Before the AIFF Super Cup semi-final, they will take on Iraq’s Al Zawraa SC in the AFC Champions League Two on November 26. So, they will focus on the continental tournament “independent of what is happening in Indian football.”Beyond the three teams that have stopped operations, Chennaiyin FC have told their players they’re unsure of when the training will resume; NorthEast United have given players an extended break and Odisha FC are yet to get their pre-season underway.The period of uncertainty has been brought on since AIFF’s tender to sell the commercial rights of the Indian Super League (ISL) found no bidders. The deadline to bid for the rights came once (November 5) and then again but eventually saw no interest by 5 pm on November 7.On Sunday, the bid evaluation committee comprising AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey, former SC Justice L. Nageswara Rao and Asian Football Confederation’s (AFC) Kesvaran Murugasu met and stated their response will be submitted in the Supreme Court as part of the process.The unprecedent situation has been brought on with Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL) and AIFF not extending their agreement that ends on December 8. When the football federation put the tender publicly, four bidders showed initial interest, before pulling out as request for proposal (RFP) wasn’t considered to be “commercially viable.”

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Should the AIFF take immediate action to secure the future of Indian football?

Meanwhile, with the season in serious threat and their livelihoods on the line, the players came together as one.“To put it simply,†said the players in a statement that was later shared on social media, “we want to play, and now.â€â€œThis is a plea to all those involved in running our sport in the country, to do whatever it takes to get the football season underway,†the statement read. “India needs its competitive football now more than ever. As for us, we remain committed, professional and ready to walk out of that tunnel and onto the pitch the moment we’re told we can. All we ask of those running our beautiful game, to match our desperation with honest intent. We’ve found ourselves in a very dark tunnel for long. We could do with a little light.â€The statement was shared by some of Indian football’s biggest names – Sunil Chhetri, Sandesh Jhingan, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Rahul Bheke, Lallianzuala Chhangte. The foreign players, too, followed suit.

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Six-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick and two-time winner Tom Coughlin are among the nine semifinalists in the coach category for induction in the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 2026 class.

Mike Holmgren, Chuck Knox, Buddy Parker, Dan Reeves, Marty Schottenheimer, George Seifert and Mike Shanahan are the others. One finalist from the group will be selected for consideration by the Hall’s selection committee:

These exercises are often subjective, and multiple semifinalists should be Hall of Famers on the merits.

Shanahan won back-to-back Super Bowls in 1997 and 1998, and his impact on the game stretched well beyond his own coaching career thanks to the zone-blocking scheme he popularized.

Seifert probably doesn’t get his just due because he built on the foundations laid by Bill Walsh. But the San Francisco 49ers’ two Super Bowl wins — particularly the second one with Steve Young at quarterback in 1994 — and a 98-30 record can’t be chalked up purely to Seifert following in the footsteps of a legend.

Schottenheimer and Reeves rank in the top 10 all time in wins, with Knox narrowly missing the cut in 12th.

Still, Belichick is far and away the clear choice from the semifinalists.

The 73-year-old is the greatest NFL coach of the modern era. He won 302 games in the regular season and another 31 in the playoffs.

The end of Belichick’s tenure with the New England Patriots and his disastrous start with North Carolina have led some to reassess his contributions to the Patriots’ dynasty.

But apportioning more credit to Tom Brady at the expense of Belichick overly simplifies things.

Sure, having Brady obviously helped, but the Patriots won 11 games when Matt Cassel started almost the entire season in 2008.

And great quarterbacks need great coaches as much as the opposite is true. Otherwise, Aaron Rodgers would have more than one than one Super Bowl ring to this point.

Belichick’s biggest mistake is sticking around too long. Much like athletes, coaches can lose their edge as a sport evolves tactically, and that’s what happened here.

By pretty much any metric, Belichick should be a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

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