The AIFF (All India Football Federation) recently took to social media and announced the appointment of Khalid Jamil as the new head coach of the senior India men's football national team. Jamil will be taking over the role from Manolo Marquez after the latter stepped down from the role last month.
The recipient of the AIFF Men’s Coach of the Year award two years in a row (2023-24, 2024-25), Jamil will come into the national team on the back of many expectations from him, and it could be interesting to see how well he does in the role.
It is also worth noting that Jamil was the first-ever Indian head coach in the ISL, and then also became the first Indian coach to take a team into the playoffs with Northeast United FC in the 2020-21 edition.
Notably, Jamil was part of a three-person shortlist selected by the AIFF that included himself, former national coach Stephen Constantine, and Slovakian manager Stefan Tarkovic. It is also worth noting that budgetary concerns were a major factor in the appointment of Khalid Jamil as the new head coach.
Jamil’s track record as coach
It is worth noting that Khalid Jamil is well aware of what it means to win. The 48-year-old has won India’s top division both as a player and as a coach. He was a player with Mahindra United in 2005 and coached Aizawl FC to the title in 2017 as well.
He has vast experience in coaching in the I-League, I-League 2, and the Indian Super League (ISL). His most recent stint as the head coach came with Jamshedpur FC when he took over the team midway through the 2023-24 season.
He had an impressive stint with JFC, leading them to the Super Cup semifinals and a runners-up finish to the tournament. Furthermore, he coached them to an ISL semifinal spot in the next season as well. His first assignment as the Indian head coach will come when India faces Iran and 2023 Asian Cup quarterfinalist Tajikistan in the CAFA Nations Cup in the latter stages of August 2025.
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