Over the past few years, Sri Lankan football has faced a crisis of stagnation, with concerns over the Football Federation of Sri Lanka’s (FFSL) mismanagement, neglect of grassroots development and reliance on foreign-born players for international success.
There is a growing concern among football leagues in Sri Lanka with many voicing their frustration and concerns about the absence of domestic competitions.
Offering a critical perspective on the current state of football in the country, a league official describes the situation as a “humongous crisis” for the future of Sri Lankan football, pointing out that without regular tournaments, young players have no pathway to develop and clubs struggle to remain viable.
This critique reflects the sentiment of many football leagues across the country that are in limbo due to the FFSL’s failure to prioritise grassroot development.
The lack of proper funding and tournament infrastructure has made it difficult for district leagues to nurture young talent. Despite receiving substantial funds from international organisations such as FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), the FFSL has consistently mismanaged these resources, leaving local football leagues with little to no financial support.
He cites instances where promised funds were only partially delivered, further compounding the struggles of the district leagues.
“Two years ago, they pledged one million rupees but paid only 250,000,” he notes, illustrating the chronic underfunding that plagues local football operations.
He believes that each district league should receive at least 3 million rupees annually, as stipulated by FIFA and Asian Football Confederation (AFC) regulations. This funding would enable leagues to organise proper competitions, maintain refereeing standards, and invest in grassroots development. Yet, despite these guidelines, the FFSL has consistently failed to provide adequate support to the leagues.
As he points out, while other countries in the region receive substantial funding from FIFA and the AFC, Sri Lanka lags behind due to the mismanagement of resources.
The FFSL’s failures are further exacerbated by a lack of transparency and accountability, which has driven sponsors away from the sport.
This underscores the broader problem facing Sri Lankan football: without proper governance and financial transparency, the sport cannot attract the investment it desperately needs to grow.
His critique is not just limited to financial mismanagement but also extends to the federation’s disregard for local talent development. He stressed that relying on foreign-born players to represent Sri Lanka at the international level undermines the growth of homegrown players, who are being denied opportunities to develop and showcase their talent.
In Sri Lanka’s victory over Cambodia in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers, only one domestic player, Sujan Perera, featured in the starting XI. The rest were players from European leagues. While this might offer a short-term boost to the national team’s performance, former national players question the long-term impact: “What happens to the next generation of Sri Lankan footballers who are being denied their shot at glory?” The federation’s focus on importing talent comes at the cost of developing homegrown players, who are left without a platform to showcase their skills and compete at higher levels.
The warnings about the future of Sri Lankan football are stark: “Without grassroots competitions, how are local players supposed to develop, gain experience, and make their way to the international stage?”
His frustrations echo those of other district leagues, which have long been neglected by the FFSL. These leagues, which are the backbone of Sri Lankan football, are left to fend for themselves without proper support or recognition from the national federation.
Many of these leagues have managed to survive only due to the commitment of local administrators and coaches, but this model is unsustainable in the long term. The broader football community in Sri Lanka fears that without immediate reforms and a renewed focus on domestic tournaments, the sport’s future is at risk.
In his view, the leagues who influence the leadership of the FFSL have failed to address these pressing issues, often prioritising personal gain over the interests of football.
Despite the national body’s failures, many leagues continued to thrive investing millions into local football for referee and coaching programmes that ensured local standards were aligned with international practices.
However, he stresses that these efforts are not enough if the larger system remains broken. While dedicated individuals keep the local leagues alive, he warns that this model is unsustainable in the long term. Football, he argues, cannot rely solely on the goodwill and personal sacrifices of its administrators. If the FFSL does not step in to provide proper support, the grassroots ecosystem will eventually collapse, taking with it the future of Sri Lankan football.
By ignoring the development of local players and failing to provide consistent domestic competitions, the FFSL is undermining the long-term future of football in the country. While short-term victories can be achieved through foreign imports, the local talent pool is left to languish, with young players having nothing to aspire to.
Another former Sri Lanka player warns that in the coming years, Sri Lankan football will face a crisis as the next generation of players, particularly those under 17, lose interest due to the lack of opportunities.
The above reflections on the state of football in Sri Lanka paint a grim picture. Warnings about the lack of domestic tournaments and the neglect of grassroots football are not only critiques but also calls for urgent reform. The current trajectory, he suggests, will lead to a future where Sri Lankan football becomes irrelevant on the international stage, with local talent left on the sidelines and the sport dependent on foreign imports.
This critique represents the silent voice of many who are frustrated with the current state of Sri Lankan football. Without a concerted effort by the FFSL to reinvest in domestic football and support grassroots competitions, the country risks falling further behind in the region, with young talent slipping through the cracks and football leagues at the national and district levels struggling to survive.
As he cautions, Sri Lanka’s football crisis is not just about the present; it is a ticking time bomb for the sport’s future in the country.
