Football Players' Association of India

Football Players' Association of India
AbbreviationFPAI
Founded13 August 2006; 20 years ago (2006-08-13)
TypeProfessional football player organisation
LocationKolkata, India
Region served
 India
Official language
English
President
Renedy Singh
AffiliationsFIFPro (since 2007)
Websitewww.thefpai.net

The Football Players' Association of India or (FPAI) is an association for Indian association footballers. Created in 2006, it aims to "look after the welfare of players and educate and advice them by engaging professionals". It was created by former Indian national team captain Bhaichung Bhutia. In 2007, it got affiliated to FIFPro.

History

The FPAI was formed on 13 August 2006 as a brainchild of the India national football team's of the then captain, Bhaichung Bhutia. He said that the body would "function as the parent body of the players" and added that it would "work with the national and state associations for the game's development" and ensure "fair treatment for footballers". Membership was opened to players, both Indian and foreign.

FPAI became an affiliate of FIFPRO on 18 November 2009 at the FIFPro Congress in Budapest.

Beyond player representation, the FPAI has also focused on issues involving contract stability, delayed salaries, medical support and post-retirement planning for footballers in India. The organisation has worked alongside FIFPRO and domestic football authorities to raise awareness about player welfare standards in Indian football, particularly during the expansion of the Indian Super League and other professional competitions.

The association has also organised the annual FPAI Indian Football Awards, where professional footballers vote for players, coaches and emerging talents across Indian football. The awards are considered among the few peer-recognised honours in the country's football system.

FPAI Awards

In 2009, the FPAI announced annual awards in four categories. In 2022, awards in women's category were introduced. Current FPAI awards are the following:

Winners

2009–2021
Year Indian Player
of the Year		Foreign Player
of the Year		Young Player
of the Year		Coach of the YearRef
2008–09 Sunil ChhetriNigeria Odafa OkolieBaljit SahniEngland Dave Booth
2009–10 Mohammed RafiNigeria Odafa OkolieJoaquim AbranchesIndia Armando Colaco
2010–11 Mehtab HussainBrazil BetoJeje LalpekhluaMorocco Karim Bencherifa
2011–12Syed Rahim NabiNigeria Ranti MartinsManandeep SinghEngland Trevor Morgan
2012–13Lenny RodriguesNigeria Ranti MartinsAlwyn GeorgeIndia Derrick Pereira
2013–14Balwant SinghScotland Darryl DuffyAlwyn GeorgeEngland Ashley Westwood
2014–15Eugeneson LyngdohHaiti Sony NordéThongkhosiem HaokipIndia Santosh Kashyap
2015–16Jeje LalpekhluaNigeria Ranti MartinsUdanta Singh KumamEngland Ashley Westwood
2016–17Anas EdathodikaLiberia Alfred JaryanUdanta Singh KumamIndia Khalid Jamil
2017–18Sunil ChhetriColombia MikuJerry MawihmingthangaSpain Albert Roca
2018–19Sunil ChhetriSpain CoroLallianzuala ChhangteNetherlands Eelco Schattorie
2019–20Sunil ChhetriFiji Roy KrishnaJerry MawihmingthangaSpain Sergio Lobera
2020–21Arindam BhattacharyaSpain Igor AnguloLalengmawia RalteIndia Khalid Jamil
2022–present
Year Indian Player
of the Year
(Men's)		Indian Player
of the Year
(Women's)		Foreign Player
of the Year		Young Player
of the Year
(Men's)		Young Player
of the Year
(Women's)		Coach of the YearRef
2021–22Liston ColacoAnju TamangNigeria Bartholomew OgbecheAkash MishraManisha KalyanSpain Manolo Márquez
2022–23Lallianzuala ChhangteGrace DangmeiScotland Greg StewartSivasakthi NarayananNaketa BishnoiEngland Des Buckingham

Key personnel

Management committee

Past Presidents

See also

References

  1. ↑ Chatterjee, Triyasha (13 May 2023). "FPAI Awards 2023: Bengaluru FC's Sivasakthi Narayanan wins Young Player of year, Mumbai City FC SWOOP numerous awards – Check Out". insidesport.in. Gangtok: Inside Sport India. Archived from the original on 13 May 2023. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
  2. ↑ "Football Players' Association of India formed". rediff.com. 13 August 2006. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  3. ↑ "Westwood bags FPAI best coach award, PK lifetime achievement". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Kolkata: The Times of India. Press Trust of India. 29 April 2014. Archived from the original on 21 September 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  4. ↑ "Indian footballer's body gets FIFPro membership". news.webindia123.com. 28 November 2007. Archived from the original on 4 October 2022. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  5. ↑ "Bhaichung launches players association". Rediff.com. 13 August 2006. Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  6. ↑ "Football Players' Association of India". FIFPRO. Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  7. ↑ "FIFPro writes to FIFA: Use your power to protect ISL players". The Times of India. 14 August 2025. Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  8. ↑ "FPAI Awards 2023: Bengaluru FC's Sivasakthi Narayanan wins Young Player of year". InsideSport. 13 May 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2026.
  9. ↑ "FPAI plans awards function". The Telegraph (Calcutta). 15 November 2009. Archived from the original on 21 December 2009. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  10. ↑ "FPAI Awards: A Night To Remember!". goal.com. Archived from the original on 6 April 2010. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  11. ↑ "FPAI Awards: Mohammed Rafi Bags The Best Indian Player, While Subrata Is Still The Fan's Favourite". goal.com. Archived from the original on 8 August 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  12. ↑ "Mehtab Hussain named "Indian Player of the Year"". blog.cpdfootball.de. 26 September 2011. Archived from the original on 18 May 2023.
  13. ↑ "Syed Rahim Nabi named FPAI Indian Player of the Year". blog.cpdfootball.de. 13 May 2012. Archived from the original on 18 May 2023.
  14. ↑ Arunava Chaudhuri (24 May 2013). "FPAI Indian Football Awards 2013 in Mumbai - A recap!". sportskeeda.com. Archived from the original on 22 January 2023.
  15. ↑ "Balwant Singh named Indian Player of the Year and more from the FPAI Indian Football Awards". goal.com. Archived from the original on 30 June 2018. Retrieved 1 February 2017.
  16. ↑ "Indian football's best performers honoured at FPAI Indian Football Awards 2015". blog.cpdfootball.de. 25 September 2015. Archived from the original on 18 May 2023.
  17. ↑ "Mohun Bagan's Lalpekhlua named FPAI Indian Player of Year". sportstar.thehindu.com. 25 April 2016. Archived from the original on 17 January 2022.
  18. ↑ "FPAI Awards 2017: Anas Edathodika, Khalid Jamil, CK Vineeth, Alfred Jaryan Win Aawards". india.com. 2 July 2017. Archived from the original on 4 July 2017.
  19. ↑ "Sunil Chhetri awarded FPAI Indian player of the year | Goal.com". Archived from the original on 22 June 2018. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
  20. ↑ "FPAI Indian Football Awards 2019 successfully held in Gangtok". blog.cpdfootball.de. 22 July 2019. Archived from the original on 18 May 2023.
  21. 1 2 "Arindam, Angulo win FPAI award". timesofindia.com. 1 April 2021. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023.
  22. ↑ "Liston Colaco Wins FPAI Indian Player of the Year Award, Akash Mishra Adjudged Young Player of the Year". news18.com. 17 June 2022. Archived from the original on 17 June 2022.
  23. ↑ ISL Media Team (14 May 2023). "Hero ISL players win big at the Indian Football Awards 2023". indiansuperleague.com. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023.
  24. ↑ "Renedy Singh elected president of FPAI". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Kolkata: The Times of India. Press Trust of India. 27 January 2014. Archived from the original on 4 October 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2022.