Bengal says no to pre-Olympic tie

Football authorities in West Bengal have refused to host India's 2004 Athens Olympics qualifier against Turkmenistan, slated for April 23. The match is likely to be shifted to the Nehru stadium in Goa.

According to Ranjit Gupta, joint secretary of the Indian Football Association (IFA), the sport's governing body in the state, the decision was made because of financial considerations.

The All-India Football Federation (AIFF) has already been intimated about IFA's decision, Gupta said.

The IFA strongman said though the April 23 match would have been an international affair, "it would not be a financially viable venture because many National League matches have been played in the city". He doubted if the fans' interest could hold after so much football.

The IFA decided to wash its hands off the pre-Olympic game after even Siliguri, another centre where official soccer matches are held, backed out for fear of incurring financial losses.

The AIFF is now likely to take the match to the Nehru stadium in Margao, Goa.

Though Gupta denies that the IFA's refusal to stage the match was the result of the state association's bad blood with the parent body, sources said the IFA is angry that the AIFF had done nothing to fight an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) ban on the IFA inviting foreign teams for its tourneys.

The AFC imposed the ban on the IFA after a violence-marred match involving Brazil's Palmeiras Club and East Bengal.