Fresh scrutiny has fallen on conditions within Indian women’s football after a video allegedly involving players from Suruchi Sangha circulated widely on social media during the ongoing Indian Women’s League 2 season.
The footage, which spread rapidly across X and Instagram, allegedly featured players speaking about financial hardship and difficulties faced while travelling for the competition. According to the claims in the clip, players were left struggling to cover basic expenses during the trip, as the owner and the club manager paid no more than 125 rupees to survive two days.
“Each player has been given 125 rupees by our club. We boarded the train at 2 pm and will reach the venue tomorrow. We haven’t eaten anything and when we called the manager, he said, ‘the owner has asked to pay that much only’. I am not sure if the owner said it or he’s making it up,” one of the players said in the viral video.
“We have got nothing to eat and now, the manager asked us to survive two days for 125 rupees. But how will we survive with just 125 rupees? Even a biscuit costs 20 rupees and we are not even getting water. How can we survive?” another player added. “Even the breakfast is 50 rupees. The lunch costs 120. How will we manage? They could have sent an official, then they could have paid,” another player added.
The state of women’s football in India
Alongside the financial allegations, additional claims also surfaced online regarding travel arrangements. Some social media posts alleged that not all members of the squad had confirmed tickets for the journey, while others questioned why no team official or manager was travelling with the group.
These claims, however, had not been independently verified at the time the matter gained traction online. Neither Suruchi Sangha nor officials connected to the tournament had publicly responded to the allegations either.
The controversy has once again drawn attention to longstanding issues surrounding women’s football infrastructure in India. Questions involving accommodation standards, delayed payments, inadequate facilities and travel-related problems have periodically surfaced across domestic competitions, especially outside the top tier of women’s football in the country.
IWL 2 Points Table
When it comes to the on-field performance, Suruchi Sangha did well in the group stage, winning two out of their three games, but struggled to live up to the potential in the main round. They have lost all five of their five games so far in the league. Hops Football Club of Delhi currently tops the chart, having won all five of their games. Meanwhile, Roshni Tigga is the leading goal-scorer for the Kolkata-based side, having netted seven times this season.
| Team | Points |
| Hops Football Club | 15 |
| Juba Sangha FC | 12 |
| Kemp Football Club | 09 |
| Krida Parbodini Pune | 06 |
| Mumbai Knights FC | 03 |
| New Alipore Suruchi Sangha | 00 |
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