The news is surprising … and parents are ecstatic. A majority of urban youth are not interested in pursuing a career in sports and those who do, usually go for big ticket games such as cricket (obviously) and tennis, among others. According to an Assocham study, only 31% of the youth from centres like Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra opt for a career in sports. Assocham’s President, however, believes that the popularity of recent films, such as Goal and Chak De India, may contribute positively to reviving the declining interest in sports as well as related careers.

Now could you ever imagine this could be the situation in a cricket crazy city like Delhi where this sport is more of a religion with a fanatic fan following? On the other hand, the situation in rural areas of India is significantly different with 72% respondents expressing an interest in pursuing a sports career. This is pretty much expected, as a majority of these sportsmen land stable jobs in corporate houses, the railways and the state governments. Also, rural youth opt for sports other than cricket such as archery, hockey, shooting and boxing, among others.

It isn’t that there is any dearth of programmes for the development of sports in the country. In fact, there are plenty, which, if implemented vigorously, could bring about a spectacular change in the overall picture. The corporate sector is mostly reluctant to sponsor any other event apart from cricket. The Indian hockey and football teams have also done well recently but no pronounced change can be seen in the state of affairs in these games as yet.

There have been a few deals of late, which may mark the beginning of a change in the corporate perception of games other than cricket. Sahara is actively promoting hockey, whereas Zee Group has entered into a long-term deal with the All India Football Federation. Times have changed and opportunities for sportsmen whose careers have been cut short due to some reason have turned more lucrative as compared to those in earlier days.