At the age of 22, Abhishek Pawar emerged as the leading scorer and the tournament’s most valuable player during the Santosh Trophy 2025-26, India’s senior national football championship organized by the All India Football Federation in Assam this past February. Representing the Services team, which is affiliated with the Indian Army, Pawar’s journey began in Gadhinglaj, a small town in the Kolhapur district, where he initially played football casually, contemplating his future.
“Opportunities in my hometown are scarce, mostly limited to small industries or agricultural work,” Pawar explains. “However, the Gadhinglaj Super League (GSL) provided me with professional training at a crucial time, enabling me to cope with pressure. Ultimately, it allowed me to join the Indian Army through the sports quota.” His experience is representative of a broader narrative that GSL aims to cultivate.
Before the advent of the Indian Super League’s franchise-based model, a group of dedicated senior players in Gadhinglaj had envisioned a similar initiative. The Gadhinglaj Super League, now in its 13th year, was established with a clear mission: to offer young athletes a competitive, structured environment where their talent could meet opportunity.
“The GSL was created to bridge the gap between talent and opportunity,” states Deepak Kuppannvar, Secretary of the Gadhinglaj United Football Association (GUFA). “Each summer, we conduct a three-week training program for young players, followed by an auction to form eight teams.”
The auction, inspired by the Indian Premier League, is a unique aspect of the GSL. Local business owners, former senior players, and other interested individuals bid on players using a points-based system to cover expenses like kits.
“Unlike the IPL, we don’t pay players in cash, but their performance can increase their points, which serves as motivation,” Kuppannvar notes. Each team consists of 14 players who receive football boots and jerseys. The tournament lasts between 10 to 12 days and features 9-a-side matches. To facilitate skill development, teams are mixed with players from different age brackets, including Under-15, Under-18, and Under-21 categories. Every match’s standout player is rewarded with a new pair of football boots.
The GSL is noteworthy not only for its structure but also for its grassroots foundation. The tournament is entirely funded by local contributions, with villagers donating annually to sustain it. Since its inception, the league has only paused once during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The football tradition in Gadhinglaj spans over five decades. According to Suresh Kolki, President of GUFA, the association has been organizing senior national-level tournaments since 2000, typically held around Diwali, attracting teams from various regions including Kerala, Mangalore, Goa, Chennai, Hyderabad, and numerous districts in Maharashtra. Matches draw crowds of 2,000 to 3,000 spectators.
Grassroots football in India faces numerous obstacles, including inadequate infrastructure, a lack of qualified coaches, ineffective talent scouting, and fragmented youth development. Daddikar emphasizes that GSL was designed to tackle these challenges, and the outcomes have been remarkable.
For many young athletes participating in GSL, the stakes are personal and immediate. Most hail from rural backgrounds with limited career paths. The league has enabled players to secure positions in various government services such as the Indian Army, Police, and Income Tax department through the sports quota.
Vikram Patil, a senior player who rose through Gadhinglaj’s football ranks, is now a senior auditor at the Comptroller and Auditor General of India’s Chennai office. He still plays for CAG. “Football doesn’t receive the attention it deserves in India,” Patil comments. “However, in Kolhapur, it is greatly valued. Early training from qualified coaches allowed me to envision football as a career, and the sport ultimately led to a job in a reputable organization. India has abundant talent, but it often remains unrefined at the grassroots level, which is exactly the role GSL fulfills.”
For Abhishek Pawar, the connection between his beginnings in Gadhinglaj and his achievements at the Santosh Trophy is evident. “My experiences in Gadhinglaj equipped me to perform at the national level,” he reflects. “Having played since childhood, this platform has profoundly shaped my life.” With thirteen years of operation, a modest budget, a dedicated team of volunteer referees, and a community of supporters, the GSL illustrates that the solutions to India’s grassroots football challenges may already be rooted in lesser-known locales.
Shubham Kurale, a journalist based in Pune, has a background in journalism from the Ranade Institute. He primarily focuses on transportation and has interests in civic issues, sports, gig workers, environmental topics, and LGBTQ+ matters. You can follow him on X: @ShubhamKurale1.
