Kolkata: Difference between revisions

{{See also|Football in Kolkata|Kolkata Marathon|Kolkata derby}}[[File:Salt Lake Stadium during FIFA U17 World Cup 2017 ....jpg|thumb|Salt Lake Stadium on a matchday of the [[2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup]]]] The most popular sports in Kolkata are [[association football|football]] and [[cricket]]. Unlike most parts of India, the residents show significant passion for football.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-06-13/news/50564484_1_arsenal-soccer-schools-football-player-football-training|title=Forget cricket, football is catching fast in India|last1=Khosla |first1=Varuni|last2=Sharma |first2=Ravi Teja|newspaper=The Economic Times |date=13 June 2014 |access-date=20 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141102050751/http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-06-13/news/50564484_1_arsenal-soccer-schools-football-player-football-training |archive-date=2 November 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Indian Football Association]], the oldest football association of the country is based here. It administers football in West Bengal. Kolkata is home to the country's top football clubs such as [[Mohun Bagan A.C.]], [[East Bengal F.C.]] and the [[Mohammedan Sporting Club (Kolkata)|Mohammedan Sporting Club]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal: India's all-consuming rivalry |url=https://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/stories/classicderby/news/newsid=1414458.html |publisher=[[FIFA]] |access-date=7 December 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111122032920/http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/stories/classicderby/news/newsid%3D1414458.html |archive-date=22 November 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Bhabani |first=Soudhriti |title=Argentine football superstar Messi charms Kolkata |url=http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/messi-charms-kolkata/1/149702.html |access-date=7 December 2011 |newspaper=India Today |location=Noida, India |date=1 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120606030106/http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/messi-charms-kolkata/1/149702.html |archive-date=6 June 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> The city has two [[Indian Super League]] clubs, [[ATK Mohun Bagan FC]] and [[SC East Bengal]]. [[Calcutta Football League]], which was started in 1898, is the oldest football league in Asia.<ref>{{cite web |title=Football in Bengal |url=http://the-ifa.org/archives.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111203053022/http://the-ifa.org/archives.php |url-status=dead |archive-date=3 December 2011 |publisher=Indian Football Association |access-date=7 December 2011}}</ref> Mohun Bagan A.C., one of the oldest football clubs in Asia, is the only organisation to be dubbed a "National Club of India".<ref>{{cite book |title=Soccer in South Asia: empire, nation, diaspora |year=2001 |publisher=Frank Cass Publishers |location=London |isbn=978-0-7146-8170-2 |page=17 |last1=Dineo |first1=Paul |last2=Mills |first2=James}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=India strive for improvement |url=https://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/news/newsid=111779.html |publisher=[[FIFA]] |date=15 February 2007 |access-date=7 December 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111173233/http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/news/newsid=111779.html |archive-date=11 January 2012}}</ref> Football matches between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, dubbed as the [[Kolkata derby]], witness large audience attendance and rivalry between patrons.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/clubs/rivalries/newsid=1414458/index.html |title=Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal: India's all-consuming rivalry |publisher=FIFA |access-date=21 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801091940/http://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/clubs/rivalries/newsid%3D1414458/index.html |archive-date=1 August 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> The multi-use [[Salt Lake Stadium]], also known as Yuva Bharati Krirangan, is India's second largest stadium by [[seating capacity]]. Most matches of the [[2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup]] were played in the [[Salt Lake Stadium]] including both Semi-final matches and the Final match. Kolkata also accounted for 45% of total attendance in [[2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup]] with an average of 55,345 spectators.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://indianexpress.com/article/sports/football-fifa-u17-world-cup/kolkata-accounted-for-45-of-total-attendance-in-fifa-u-17-world-cup-west-bengal-chief-minister-mamata-banerjee-4914390/ |title=Kolkata accounted for 45% of total attendance in FIFA U-17 World Cup: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee |newspaper=Indian Express |access-date=30 October 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171102011647/http://indianexpress.com/article/sports/football-fifa-u17-world-cup/kolkata-accounted-for-45-of-total-attendance-in-fifa-u-17-world-cup-west-bengal-chief-minister-mamata-banerjee-4914390/ |archive-date=2 November 2017 |date=30 October 2017}}</ref> The [[Calcutta Cricket and Football Club]] is the second-oldest cricket club in the world.<ref>{{cite book |last=Desai |first=Ashwin |title=Blacks in whites: a century of cricket struggles in KwaZulu-Natal |year=2000 |publisher=University of Natal Press |location=Pietermaritzburg, South Africa |isbn=978-1-86914-025-0 |page=38}}</ref><ref name="ccfcdate">{{Cite news |last=Mukherji |first=Raju |title=Seven years? Head start |url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050314/asp/opinion/story_4428341.asp |work=The Telegraph |date=14 March 2005 |access-date=26 October 2006 |location=Kolkata |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930014559/http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050314/asp/opinion/story_4428341.asp |archive-date=30 September 2007 |df=dmy-all}}</ref>