The Durand Cup, commonly known as the Durand Football Tournament (DFT), is an annual Indian football competition. It was first conducted in 1888 in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. The Durand Football Tournament Society (DFTS) and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) host the Durand Football Tournament.
This Durand football tournament is the oldest club football tournament in Asia and the third oldest in the world. This Durand football tournament is named after its founder, Sir Henry Mortimer Durand, who was the Foreign Secretary of British Occupied India from 1884 to 1894. The armed forces of British India first began the Durand football tournament. After the independence of India, the Indian Armed Forces, as well as other guests, were invited.
The History Behind the Durand Football Tournament
The Durand football tournament, also known as the Durand Cup, was started by Sir Henry Mortimer Durand in Shimla in 1888. This tournament was formed to encourage the armed forces to maintain health and spread awareness about sports competitions in India. The venue of the tournament was Shimla till 1939. Later, the tournament venue was shifted to New Delhi in 1940.
The Durand tournament was initially confined to the British armed forces and the Indian Army of Britain. Instead of football, players chose to play field hockey. The Indian and Pakistani armies dominated the sport on the national level. At international events such as the Olympics, the Indian and Pakistani armed forces also exhibited their game. Only Nepali men and brigades of Gurkhas were prohibited from the football tournament. The popularity of football took hold until the Indian and Pakistani armed forces performed.
India’s independence and the formation of Pakistan increased demand for the Durand Tournament headquarters to be established in Pakistan. The then Defence Secretary H. M. Patel resisted the idea and gave the right to host the tournament to the Durand Football Tournament Society (DFTS), an independent registered society based in Delhi.
The Structure of the tournament
Earlier, there was no structure to the format of the competition. Society used to introduce frequent changes in the design and rules of the games. As of now, there is an organised structure to the game. The game is played in two steps: Round Robin and knockout.
A total of 20 teams participate in the group stage round. Each team will have a maximum of 30 players. After stage one of the Round Robin schedule, the top teams from each group will be qualified for the knockout stage. This stage will later eliminate two teams from the finals.
The Durand Cup 2022
The latest Durand Cup edition, 2022, is the 131st edition of the Durand Cup. The Durand Cup is the oldest football tournament in Asia and the first edition recognised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Indian Oil sponsored the 2022 Durand Cup. Later, the brand named it after the product, as Indian Oil Durand Cup.
For the first time this year, the tournament will be played in more than one venue. The game is hosted by the Durand Football Tournament Society (DFTS) in collaboration with the Eastern Command of the Indian Armed Forces (ECIAF) and the government of West Bengal. The governments of Assam and Manipur have also supported the tournament.
India hosted the 2022 Durand Cup from August 16 to September 18, 2022. The tournament is played in Kolkata, Guwahati, and Imphal. There are 20 teams, and 47 matches will be played. Five matches have been played till now. The final match of the 2022 Durand Cup will be played in the Salt Lake stadium in Kolkata on September 18.
